Whisper in the Wind
by drizzleandflames
Summary: "Nothing can be truer than fairy wisdom. It is as true as sunbeams." - She was a servant of nature, was not made for the perils and horrors of this world and yet she was led to cross paths with a strange company of dwarves over and over again. Such coincidences don't exist, even faes know as much. And after all, what harm could come of a little adventure? (Kili/OC)
1. A stranger in the dark

**Well then. Here we go, a new story! I wasn't quite sure whether to post this one so soon after the end of my last story, especially considering that I'm not entirely sure yet where this journey is going to take us in the end, but it's a new year and after having seen BotFA, it's definitely time for a new tale! :D**

**So, I hope you'll enjoy this story and leave your thoughts on the first chapter! :)**

* * *

><p>„I'm telling you, it says Baggins."<p>

Kili shook his head as he rode along on his pony beside his brother, looking at the small note in his hands once more. It was already quite worn from where he had been keeping it in one of his pockets. "No," he said, looking at the squiggly writing. "I'm rather sure it's an O. Boggins."

"I'm saying it's an A," Fili answered but his little brother just shrugged nonchalantly in reply as the blond shot him a sideways glance. "Be that as it may, we should probably make camp for the night. I doubt we'll get much further today."

Kili just nodded in return as they led their ponies a little away from the road into the trees until they found a convenient spot to set up camp. They were a little less than a day's journey away from the Shire anymore but both of them knew that travelling by night could be dangerous even in as green and peaceful a land as the one they were currently travelling through and they were both tired from the tireless riding of the day, as were their ponies.

"When do you reckon we'll reach Hobbiton?"

Fili looked up as his brother came walking back from where he had tied up Myrtle and Minty, the two ponies grazing calmly a little distance away. The blond was busy putting up a fire, bringing his attention back to his task as he answered while Kili plopped down on the ground next to him where their bedrolls were set up.

"I'd say sometime after midday tomorrow," Fili answered as the flames sparked and he worked them up until they had a small fire crackling in the middle of their camp. With a small sigh he sat back, joining his brother's side as Kili fished out some food from one of his packs. "It's not too far and since we're not to meet our burglar until nightfall, we have time to stock up on our supplies in the town."

Kili just nodded as they shared dinner and biting a big chunk out of his piece of bread, he replied around the food in his mouth. "I just hope there'll be something to eat."

"Why does that not surprise me?" Fili grinned as they roasted what was left of their sausages. Kili's mind was always occupied with food, fighting or females in Fili's experience, mostly exclusively in that order, as well. Kili just returned his brother's grin and they kept on chatting easily as night fell over them and the only light was provided by the moon and the fire they had started. It wasn't long until they divided the night into two shifts of watch between them and Fili went to sleep while Kili took the first turn.

It hadn't been long when the dark-haired archer became slightly bored of just sitting by the fire and watching the night, which was when he picked up a flat stone from the floor and began turning it in his hand absentmindedly. He didn't particularly like being on watch, though he knew the importance of such a task, of course. But he could imagine many things more interesting than simply sitting around in the dark when nothing ever happened. With a sigh, he tossed up the stone in his hand once and caught it again before he carelessly threw it into the bushes opposite him.

However, he hadn't expected the sudden rustle that followed his action and as he caught slight movement in the trees, he quickly took up his bow and notched an arrow, pointing it in the direction. His eyes couldn't make out anyone in the darkness, but he was sure there had been someone as he narrowed his eyes.

There was a light gust of wind, ruffling the leaves around the camp and Kili could swear he heard something move through the bushes, although as his eyes followed the noise once more he couldn't see anything. With a swift kick to the side he woke his brother, all the while keeping his arrow at the ready.

"Who's there?" he called into the night, receiving no answer apart from the small noises Fili caused as he sat up in alarm, swiftly tugging one of his many knives out of his sleeve as he sent his little brother a questioning gaze. Both of them turned abruptly as a gust of wind ruffled the leaves around them again, though this time Kili frowned deeply for he could not feel the air that was causing the bushes to move anywhere else around him. In fact, it seemed to be completely windless, which made the whole situation a little eerie to the brunet dwarf.

"Come out and show yourself!" Fili now demanded loudly and as Kili looked over at him, he saw that his brother had exchanged his knife with one of his broad swords in the meantime. The brunet flinched slightly as suddenly a wordless whisper seemed to flow through the air around them and he watched in confusion as the leaves moved once more, though this time he could have sworn that he saw a silhouette moving behind the trees. However, it vanished as soon as he had seen it, making him doubt whether it had actually been there.

Kili exchanged a worried look with his brother as they both turned so they were standing back to back, both with their weapons drawn and ready to defend themselves.

"I don't see anyone," Kili muttered to his big brother as he watched the trees closely, feeling Fili suddenly turn slightly behind him.

"I do," the blond uttered and Kili quickly spun around at his words, following his brother's gaze as he pointed his sword at the small figure that was sitting in the grass beside the fire, watching them calmly out of big emerald green eyes.

Fili's eyes were set intently on the strange small female before them and she looked right back at him over the tip of his sword, her eyes boring into him. As her emerald gaze momentarily flicked from him to Kili who was pointing his arrow at her, the blond dwarf took a moment to notice that she didn't seem to be armed at all. There was no weapon in her hands that were folded in her lap as she sat cross-legged on the floor, and neither could he see any attached to her clothing, which also seemed rather strange now that he took a closer look at her. A thin forest green dress was wrapped around her slim form, though in Fili's eyes it wasn't doing a very good job of covering her body properly and if he weren't at the moment threatening her for being an intruder, he would probably have averted his eyes. The green fabric was torn in several places and left her shoulders and arms uncovered as well as a good part of her legs as it stopped more or less at her knees as far as he could see in her sitting position.

"Who are you?" Kili demanded at his side, ripping Fili out of his thoughts after he had only stared at her for a few moments. The small woman tilted her head slightly at his brother, eyes growing curious as her fiery red hair cascaded in soft waves over her right shoulder at her movement. "What are you doing here?"

Fili watched as her eyes bore into Kili for a long moment before she averted her gaze to the fire she was sitting next to, reaching out one hand to the sparks of glimmering embers that rose from it into the air without touching them. With a confused frown, Kili turned to his big brother, exchanging another glance with him to see if Fili found this scenario as strange as he did. Fili just shrugged his shoulders slightly as he raised his sword further towards the woman. Her gaze flew from the fire to his blade instantly and the blond dwarf watched silently as she reached out and curiously touched the tip of it with her fingertips, immediately jerking her hand back as if she had been stung.

"It burns," she mumbled softly to herself, making Fili lower his sword without really intending to do so as he looked down at her while she examined her fingertips closely. The iron of his blade had actually burned her ever so lightly, he realized. Fili's eyes widened as full realization hit him suddenly and while Kili kept pointing his arrow at her – although she didn't seem to pay much mind to it – the blond dwarf held out his hand to calm his little brother down. Kili shot him an incredulous look.

"What are you doing?" the brunet asked, ignoring Fili as he shook his head at him, eyes trained on the small creature that had turned back to watching the embers rise towards the sky, ignoring their hushed conversation. "For all you know, she could be –"

"_Kili_," Fili finally turned to his brother, giving him an imploring look as he spoke. "She's a fae!"

"She's not a fae," Kili huffed dismissively in return, lowering his bow without thinking as he addressed his brother's seemingly ridiculous statement. "Obviously. Faes don't exist."

"You are a rude dwarf," another voice suddenly cut in quietly and both brothers turned their heads to look at the red-haired woman in front of them. She looked at Kili with a small frown on her delicate features and only now did both of them notice the numerous little flowers that seemed to have been woven into her long hair. Kili opened his mouth in protest.

"Excuse me?" he uttered indignantly, raising his eyebrows at her as she kept sitting on the grassy ground comfortably and seemingly completely unfazed by the situation. "You're the one who attacks us in the middle of the night, sneaking into our camp like a –"

"I did not attack you," the woman interrupted, her voice quiet and soft like the whisper in the wind around them had been before. Kili now lowered his bow completely, obviously feeling confident that she did not pose a real threat to them. Fili watched the two of them interact silently. "It was you who threw a stone at me."

Kili seemed a little flustered at that, frowning at her as he put his hands on his hips, one of them still gripping his bow. "Well, I didn't know you were there!"

"Still rude," she said with another tilt of her head, blinking up at him. "To disturb nature."

Her gaze flicked to Fili as the blond took a careful step closer and she watched as he slowly sheathed his sword before she brought her eyes back up to his. She held his gaze as he crouched down in front of her, bringing himself to the same eyelevel as she was. She really was small, he thought to himself before he addressed her with a soft tone. "Do you have a name?"

"Of course," she answered pleasantly, a small smile tugging on her full lips now as she returned his gaze calmly. Now that they weren't threatening her with their sharp weapons any longer she seemed much more inclined to talk to them. She kept her eyes trained on him as Kili put his arrow back in his quiver before he walked up to them as well, looking down at her as he came to stand next to Fili.

"Well, what is it?" the brunet asked while Fili kept watching the fae closely, seeing her smile widen ever so slightly as her emerald eyes shone with mischief.

"It is sweet as it is bitter," she murmured, bringing her gaze back to look into Fili's eyes as he raised his eyebrows slightly. "It will leave a distinct taste on your tongue."

"She speaks in riddles," Kili muttered as he crouched down as well, shooting the obviously amused fae a dry look. She smiled at him, her eyes twinkling in the firelight.

"She is wondering why she should give her name to strange dwarves who would remain nameless themselves."

The corner of Fili's lips quirked up at her words and he shot a small glance to his little brother who simply returned it with both his eyebrows raised. "Fili," he then said, returning his gaze to the fae.

"And Kili," the brunet added and in unison they ended, as they always did. "At your service!"

She looked at them both for a moment, simply smiling and not saying anything in return. Her gaze flicked to the glimmering embers once more, and her smile softened ever so slightly as she suddenly stood, leaving the two dwarves to stare at her bare feet in the grass before they quickly rose as well.

"Hey!" Kili called as she turned away from them without a word and walked back toward the bushes, and both the dwarves' eyes widened in shock as they saw her body lose its form as it became transparent the further into the leaves she walked. The fae looked back at them over her shoulder. "Where are you going?"

Once again, she tilted her head at the brunet, giving him a dainty little smile as if it was something he ought to know. Her eyes darted to Fili as the blond spoke up, the strange expression in his icy blue eyes halting her in her tracks for just a moment.

"What _is_ your name?" he asked quietly, his voice carried over to her by the breeze in the air. She smiled again, regarding the blond dwarf for a moment. The strange braids in his hair and his moustache, his stocky figure, the weapons that were strapped to him seemingly everywhere, so contradicted in the gentle look in his eyes.

"Cinna," she finally said and her voice was carried through the air as if it were the wind whispering before she stepped into the trees and vanished from their sight.


	2. Hold back the river

**Hello again! Another chapter, yay!**

**Thanks to _Violinist_, _TerraMacMillan_, _itslittleblue_, _bloodyrose1294_, _Snowball A.K.A. Winter Wolf_, _KijoKuroi_ (I'm very glad you broke your rule for me!), _okgurl87_, _Eruwaedhiel95_ and _MidnightTales357_ for your reviews! Special thanks also to those of you who have found their way from my old story to this new one! Don't think I've forgotten any of you! :D**

**And thanks to those who followed and favourited this story so early on, I hope you'll keep up with it as it goes on!**

**Now, here we go, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Neither Fili nor Kili had talked much about their strange nightly encounter on their way to Hobbiton the next day, not quite knowing what to think of it at all and so following their own thoughts about it without necessarily sharing it with the other. They didn't mention it, dismissing it as exceptional yet unimportant when they had much more essential things to do and think of such as acquiring a burglar, for example.<p>

Night had already fallen over the Shire when Fili and Kili were finally standing in front of the round green door to the hobbit hole before them, inspecting the sign that was carved into it.

"This must be it," Fili said, nodding at the rune on the door and Kili just nodded, not hesitating any longer before he rang the doorbell. The two listened as the sound echoed through the house whose windows were illuminated with warm light. It wasn't long before the door swung open to reveal a Halfling with brown curly hair standing before them in a colourful dressing gown and a deep frown on his forehead. A small and high-pitched uncomfortable noise escaped his throat as he saw the two dwarves standing before him.

"Fili," the first said with a smile and a polite greeting nod.

"And Kili," the brunet brother added, observing the hobbit closely before the two of them swept down into a deep bow, ending in unison, as always. "At your service!"

As Kili straightened himself back up, a bright smile came to play around his lips as he addressed their burglar. "You must be Mister Boggins!"

"No!" the Halfling retorted immediately and both brothers frowned deeply as he moved to slam the door shut in their faces. "You can't come in! You've come to the wrong house!"

Kili quickly reached out and blocked the door without much effort, keeping the hobbit from closing it as he made a step forward onto the threshold. "What? Has it been cancelled?"

"No one told us," Fili muttered sceptically from beside him, glancing at his little brother before giving the hobbit a doubtful look as the smaller man spluttered slightly upon their words.

"Can…? No, nothing's been _cancelled_," he said with a frown, obviously confused and slightly unnerved but Kili ignored the hobbit's flustered expression completely as his smile came back to his face.

"Well, that's a relief!" the brunet dwarf breathed before he pushed past the hobbit and inside the house, Fili following on his heels. It wasn't long until they found Dwalin and Balin who were already there and gathering many chairs around a large table in the dining hall, and Fili and Kili swiftly swooped in to help them while the rest of their company arrived shortly after.

None of the dwarves cared much about Bilbo's protests as they emptied his pantry and proceeded having a grand dinner party followed by a song about all the things that Bilbo Baggins – as it had turned out, his name wasn't _Boggins_ after all – hated while they worked together to clean the many dishes they had used. The hobbit himself kept scurrying around in confusion most of the evening, even after the leader of their company had arrived. It was only when he realized that they actually meant for him to become their burglar that he finally seemed to assess the situation in its entirety.

He fainted shortly after, when Bofur told him about Smaug, the dragon that was guarding Erebor, the mountain – their homeland – that they aspired to reclaim from him. Fili had watched it happen with the appropriate amount of amusement mixed with pity.

"Oh aye, he'll melt the flesh off your bones in the blink of an eye," the dwarf with the large furry hat said nonchalantly after Bilbo had inquired about the part of his contract that covered possible incineration.

"Are you alright, laddie?" Balin asked the hobbit amongst them with a compassionate expression on his wise old face and Fili watched from his spot as the hobbit took a deep breath, shaking his head slightly.

"Huh… yes, I… I just feel a bit faint," Bilbo muttered, bending slightly and taking deep breaths as he rested his hands on his knees.

"Think furnace with wings!" Bofur then said cheerfully, offering the hobbit a smile as he motioned vaguely with his pipe, ignoring Bilbo's words that he needed air. "Flash of light, searing pain, then poof! ... You're nothing more than a pile of ash!"

Fili shook his head slightly to himself as they all watched the hobbit straighten for a moment before he shook his head with a short "No!" and fell to the floor unconscious. Fili doubted that this man – this little Halfling who fainted when a dragon was even just mentioned – would make very good burglar material.

"Do you think he'll come around?" Kili asked his big brother a few hours after the party had ended and the dwarves had settled down to sleep in Bilbo's house for the night after he had refused to sign the contract, claiming – as Fili had suspected – that he was the wrong hobbit for the job. The blond dwarf shrugged slightly from where he was lying on a small sofa next to the chair Kili was lounging in.

"Hard to say," he muttered, although he thought that the answer they'd gotten had been rather clear. He glanced around the company scattered around the room, more than half of which was already asleep. "I saw Gandalf speak to him a little while ago but I doubt he was able to change his mind. And really, Master Baggins doesn't seem much like burglar material, does he?"

Kili shook his head slightly, his forehead creased with a small thoughtful frown. "I suppose not. I understand why he doesn't want to go and travel across half of Middle-Earth just to steal something from a fire-breathing dragon though," he said as he let himself slump deeper into the chair's soft cushions. "To anyone's ears it would sound like a suicide mission. And it _is_ awfully cosy here."

They set out on the road early the next day, none of them truly believing that the hobbit would change his mind and show up but putting wagers on it nonetheless. Kili was still hopeful as he always was, betting against Fili that the hobbit would turn up in the end. And, to their great surprise, they had not yet ridden for too long through the green woodland of the Shire when behind them suddenly sounded a voice, yelling after them.

"Wait! Wait!" Bilbo Baggins called as he ran up to the company once they had stopped their ponies upon his calls. "I've signed it!"

And after Balin had taken a look at the now signed contract and given his approval, the hobbit was officially a member of the Company of Thorin Oakenshield. The dark-haired dwarf-king simply ordered them to give Bilbo a pony before they rode on and it was Fili and Kili who lifted the hobbit onto Bungle, ignoring Bilbo's protests that he could keep up with them on foot.

"Told you he'd come," Kili grinned at his brother as he caught a bag of coins that was tossed towards him with a content expression on his face. Fili just rolled his eyes slightly.

"Aye," he replied with a shake of his head as he fumbled a small purse out of the pocket of his coat, handing it to his brother with a small sigh. "No need to get cocky."

Kili just grinned as they rode along, his mood bright as their journey began. This was the case for most of the company over the following days and they all entertained each other with amicable chatter and stories at night around the campfire. Bilbo was proving to be a rather shy fellow, though he seemed to get along very nicely with Balin from the start and they often talked amongst themselves while they helped setting up camp. The hobbit also had a lot to talk about with Bombur, the fat red-haired dwarf who was their designated cook. Fili and Kili's tasks were less compatible with the hobbit's interests, for most days they were the ones scouting ahead for they were amongst the youngest of the company and their eyes were the keenest. And most nights they were assigned with looking after the ponies.

"What's for supper tonight?" Kili asked as he led three of their ponies to an abundance of trees near a river that they had set up camp nearby. Fili just snorted quietly from where he was tying the reins of two other ponies to a low branch of a tree.

"If the rabbits you caught today are anything to go by, I'd say stew," he answered as he secured his knot expertly while impatiently brushing a strand of blond hair out of his face that the breeze had ruffled up. Kili nodded as he followed his brother's example and went to tie the first two ponies to one of the trees, leaving the third to stand on its own for a moment. He was about to answer Fili when he heard the pony neigh quietly behind him and he turned his head shortly to see whether everything was alright, though he had to make a double-take when he saw the figure standing next to Gyrdie. His eyes widened and his fingers halted in tying the reins to the branch he'd selected, holding them limply in his hand as he stared at her.

"Wha… F-Fili!" he called, never taking his eyes off her, and the blond dwarf turned immediately upon his brother's voice, eyes widening as well as he saw the small red-haired woman standing in front of the brown pony, gently caressing its head. Her emerald eyes rose from the animal and she shortly met Fili's gaze before her eyes turned to his little brother.

"Your ponies are nervous," she said sweetly, raising one slender eyebrow as her hand lingered on the mare's brown fur. The pony nuzzled its head into the fae's palm.

"What are you… have you been following us?!" Kili asked loudly, frowning in annoyance as the fae ignored his question completely, her gaze shortly flicking to the river behind him. Kili ignored the nervous shuffle of hooves from the pony whose reins he was currently holding, instead narrowing his eyes at the redhead.

"The river is in uproar," Cinna continued, emerald eyes flicking back to look at Kili intently. "Don't stand too close."

Her eyes narrowed slightly as the brunet dwarf simply rolled his eyes in reply, glancing over to Fili who had his arms crossed over his chest tightly, glaring at the small redhead suspiciously. As sure as he had been of her harmlessness before he had his doubts now. Thorin had made it very clear that their quest was supposed to be a secret, for other eyes may turn to the vast wealth that lay beneath Erebor, attempting to claim it for themselves if they thought it lay unprotected. Surely, the sudden appearance of this woman – this fae, though usually unseen and secretive – could not mean anything good, she might even be some sort of spy, Fili thought darkly, one hand coming to rest on the hilt of his sword.

However, his attention was drawn away from the red-haired fae when the pony Kili was keeping hold of suddenly neighed in agitation, and the nervous shuffle of hooves turned into the beast rearing up and throwing Kili off his feet. Spooked by the wildly flowing river, the pony tried to move away but lost its footing on the muddy bank. Fili could only watch with wide eyes as the animal neighed fearfully as it tumbled right into the current.

It was only a moment later that Kili had scrambled to his feet and hastily jumped into the river himself, no doubt in an attempt to get the pony back.

"Kili!" Fili screamed fearfully as he ran to the riverbank, seeing his brother being swept away after the pony as he tried to reach it in the water. "No!"

The blond didn't even hesitate before he shrugged off his heavy fur coat and made to jump after his brother when a slender hand suddenly wrapped around his forearm, holding him back. Fili turned to the red-haired fae furiously, shrugging her grip off harshly.

"Wait!" she said, her voice now not as sweet anymore. It was still soft but there was now another edge to it, urgency, as Fili realized. "If you go after him, you will both drown."

"He's my brother!" Fili answered loudly as he turned from her towards the river again, annoyed that she was costing him precious time. "I can't lose him!"

"Follow me!"

The blond prince turned his head in confusion upon her strange reply, only to see her running down the riverbank in the direction Kili and the pony had been swept off to. Fili hesitated only a second before he set after her, noticing despite the dire situation that she seemed to leave no footprints on the ground, her steps soft and light even as she ran almost too fast for him to keep up with her.

She stopped abruptly then and as Fili reached her, she moved forward to the edge of the riverbank, at the same time motioning for him to pick up a rather large broken branch that lay on the floor beneath the trees a little distance away. He fetched it swiftly and only when he came to stand next to her did his eyes catch sight of a dark shock of hair in the waves of the current, his little brother desperately holding onto a boulder in the river to keep himself from going under.

Without hesitation Fili reached out the branch. "KILI!" he yelled over the noise of the river and the terrified neighing sounds that the pony made as it was swept down the river further and out of their reach. "GRAB IT!"

Kili whipped back his head to get the water out of his face, coughing as another wave passed over him and threatened to take him with it. He reached out with a shaking hand as his body was pressed painfully against the boulder, his fingers grazing the now wet branch only slightly before he finally managed to latch on to it. Not a second later he felt himself being pulled through the current and he heard his brother's laboured breathing as he managed to manoeuvre him onto the riverbank. Kili collapsed onto the ground instantly, coughing and retching out the water that had gotten into his lungs. He felt a heavy hand land on his shoulder as he heaved in deep breaths of air painfully, taking a few seconds before he turned and fell onto his back, breathing heavily. He looked up to see two faces hovering over him, one belonging to his brother and the other to the red-haired fae. Both of them were looking worriedly at him, though he noticed a small smile on the redhead's face, causing him to frown slightly and turn away from her to look at Fili instead.

"I could only save this," he uttered hoarsely, his throat still aching as he held up the large bag of supplies he'd somehow managed to untie from the ponies back. Unfortunately, he hadn't been able to save the pony itself.

Fili only shook his head in exasperation before asking, "Are you alright? Are you hurt?" And upon receiving a shake of the head from Kili, punched him in the shoulder, hard.

"Then what were you thinking?! Knucklehead!" the blond growled as Kili winced and rubbed the spot Fili had hit. It was then that other voices suddenly drifted towards them from further up the riverbank and only a few seconds later, the rest of the company came into view as they hurried along the shore to find them.

"What in Durin's name is going on?" Thorin demanded roughly, sword drawn and his gaze set on his two nephews.

"We heard screamin' and yellin'," Gloìn spoke up from the middle of the group, also looking at the two heirs of Durin questioningly.

"Thought you were being attacked by orcs," Dwalin grumbled, one of his hands holding on to one of the large battle-axes he carried on his back.

"Who's that?" another voice suddenly spoke quietly, and the dwarves' heads turned to Bilbo for a moment before they followed his gaze and as one suddenly became aware of the third person sitting by the two brothers on the ground. A small green-eyed woman was combing her fingers through her long red hair as she looked up at them curiously.

* * *

><p>Cinna watched as the men – well, dwarves – around her levelled her with suspicious glares, many of them still holding on to their numerous weapons as she stared up at them from where she was still sitting next to the two dwarf brothers she already knew.<p>

"Answer!" one of the dwarves demanded roughly then, scowling at her as she blinked up at him innocently. He was tall for a dwarf, the fae noted even from her sitting position, and his long dark hair was streaked with a few grey strands, framing a face with strong features and piercing blue eyes. She considered him rather handsome even if his sour expression diminished that ever so slightly. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

"I am no one of importance," she finally said quietly in reply, shrugging slightly and lowering her gaze to the tips of her auburn hair as she picked a broken petal from it and let it fall softly onto the ground. "And I am doing nothing but sit at your feet at the moment."

The dark-haired dwarf narrowed his eyes at her, raising his sword. The action caused Cinna's gaze to flick toward the blade, eyeing the forged iron warily as he balanced it in front of her face. She flinched back as he pointed it at her.

"Uncle!" Someone beside her spoke up then and the fae turned her head slightly to look at Fili, the blond dwarf glancing at the one who kept the blade in front of her face instead. "I doubt that she poses any threat to us, she helped save Kili from the current!"

Cinna watched silently as the dark-haired dwarf's gaze wandered from the blond dwarf to Kili who was still on the ground next to her, although he had brought himself into an upright sitting position by now, staring sheepishly back at his uncle. The fae wondered for a moment why the younger brother looked so ashamed beneath his uncle's heavy gaze.

"I wouldn't have had to help if he had listened to my words in the first place," Cinna spoke softly to no one in particular, although she raised one eyebrow slightly as Kili suddenly turned his head towards her and shot her a dark look.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he growled, narrowing his eyes at her as she gave him a pointed look in turn.

"I told you not to stand too close," she muttered, emerald eyes boring into his own brown ones. That dwarf really was getting on her nerves with his attitude. "You underestimated nature's force."

The brunet merely huffed in reply before he turned his head away from her, leaving her slightly irked at his unfriendly behaviour. _Rude dwarf,_ she thought to herself with a small discontent frown before her attention was drawn away from him as Fili spoke again, addressing his uncle as he stood.

"We've met her before, several nights ago before we reached Hobbiton, Thorin," the blond dwarf explained to his uncle, shooting Cinna a small look as she crossed her arms over her chest in a defiant manner.

"And she followed you?" the older dwarf concluded with a deep frown. Fili shrugged slightly in lack of a good answer.

"Which probably means that she's some sort of spy," another of the dwarves then spoke up, a big one with a baldhead and several tattoos. He looked rather menacing, Cinna concluded silently to herself, though she narrowed her eyes at him anyway. She had never known that dwarves were such an unfriendly and distrustful lot. The fae returned the large dwarf's suspicious look with a sullen glare of her own before her emerald gaze slowly wandered away from him as another voice spoke up.

"Don't you think that if she were an actual spy – of whoever you think would care to spy on you –, she would… well, not just sit there?" a small man with curly brown hair spoke, his voice small and soft amongst the booming tones of his dwarven companions. A hobbit, Cinna realized with a small smile. She liked hobbits. The fae watched curiously as he flustered slightly beneath the hard looks his companions shot him upon his words. "I mean, well, it's just that… she doesn't even have a _weapon_. How much of a spy could she possibly be?"

"A very bad one?" one of the dwarves provided quietly, though no one but Cinna herself seemed to listen to him. He was young, with red hair and clad in many knitted clothing items. The fae wondered if he was not a bit warm in his clothes, shortly glancing down at the cool grass that stroked against her bare legs.

"Well, if she's not a spy then what is she?" Another one uttered and Cinna's gaze flicked up again to a burly red-haired dwarf with a long beard and a stern look on his face.

"Bilbo is right," Fili then spoke again before the fae could even utter a word herself, although she didn't particularly feel the need to anyway, she was quite amused watching them trying to figure out what was going on by themselves. "She's not dangerous at all, she just… well, she's –"

"A fae," someone new spoke then from behind the group and as Cinna looked up she could see a tall man with a long beard and grey robes make his way through the small crowd. He shot the dwarves each a disapproving look as he approached her, leaning slightly on his staff. "She is neither a spy nor a threat. You have before you a simple fae, so sheath your weapons, there is no need for any of that here."

The dwarves hesitated a moment before they complied grumblingly, eyeing the fae as they put their weapons away. Once no more iron was pointing at her, Cinna stood slowly, her bare toes wriggling slightly in the grass beneath her feet. She only noticed Fili helping his brother to his feet out of the corner of her eyes as she stared up at the grey-robed man that was towering over her, sending her a small smile from beneath his beard.

"I am Gandalf," he said and Cinna tilted her head slightly as he lifted his hand to tip his pointy grey hat slightly. A funny gesture, she found. "Gandalf the Grey, they call me."

"One of the wizards," the fae spoke with wide eyes once the name had settled in her mind and she had made the connection. Gandalf nodded with a slight hum as she smiled. "A friend of the Brown perhaps?"

"I am a friend of many," Gandalf answered as the dwarves around them simply listened to their strange riddled conversation with frowns on their faces. "Radagast is one of my dearest."

"Now," the wizard then continued, giving her a curious look. "I am sure your name is as lovely as you are, my dear. Tell me, how may I call you?"

The fae smiled at the wizard's flattery, twirling a strand of her red hair around her finger as she hesitated for only a moment before she answered. "Cinnamon."

"Cinnamon," Gandalf repeated with a smile, nodding slightly to himself. "A beautiful name, indeed."

"It is sweet as it is bitter," she heard someone mutter quietly beside her then and she turned her head to see Fili smile slightly to himself as he looked at her. She grinned brightly as he repeated the words she had uttered several nights ago in the brothers' camp when they had asked her for her name. Gandalf followed the interaction silently before the fae returned her attention to him.

"You may call me Cinna," she said finally, giving the wizard a bright smile. Gandalf nodded in return, inclining his head slightly.

"Well, Cinna, I do believe a thank you is in order," he said and the fae tilted her head slightly, observing the wizard carefully. "After all, you did help save our dear Kili from the grip of the river. Now… I do believe I have something… ah!"

She watched as the wizard rummaged through the pockets of his robes with one hand, apparently looking for something particular. Her emerald eyes shone with curiosity as he retrieved his hand and held it out to her, presenting a small colourful marble to her. It shone with various shades of darker and lighter blue and Cinna smiled brightly as he let it fall into her outstretched hand, bringing it close to her face to examine it.

"It's very pretty," she said then, grasping the marble in her palm and glancing up at the wizard who returned her smile gently, putting one large hand on her slender shoulder before his gaze wandered to the dark-haired dwarf that had been questioning her earlier. He seemed to be the leader of their group. Thorin, Fili had called him before, she remembered.

"Now, Thorin, I think you can see that dear Cinna here means no harm to anyone," he stated, earning himself a dark look from the dwarf in return. "It would be best to leave her be and let her go about her own business again without bothering her further."

"Bothering her? She's the one that –" Kili's sudden words were cut off by an elbow in the ribs from his big brother, making him grunt in slight pain as he closed his mouth. Cinna shot the rude dwarf an annoyed look that he returned equally, though he didn't say anything else.

"I cannot simply let her go, Gandalf," Thorin spoke, eyeing the fae carefully. "She may be harmless but that does not diminish the fact that she turned up suddenly after she has met my nephews several nights before, which clearly conveys that she has indeed been following us."

"I go where nature leads me, Master Dwarf," Cinna spoke before Gandalf could answer the dark-haired dwarf. "Along trees and rivers wherever the wind may take me. I am not to blame if our paths crossed again. I was merely trying to help."

Thorin gave the fae a hard look, staying silent for a moment before he nodded curtly, his frown softening ever so slightly. Cinna gave him a light smile that he didn't return as he addressed his companions instead. "Gather your things, we return to camp. Make sure you rest well tonight, we move on at first light."

And with that he turned away and walked back the way he had come without another word, most of the others following swiftly after him, though not without giving her a last look before they moved away. Cinna simply watched them go, her gaze shortly lingering on the back of the dark-haired young dwarf she'd helped rescue out of the river. Kili, she repeated his name in her head.

"Thank you," another voice then said and the fae quickly turned her head to see Fili, the blond brother, still standing there, giving her a grateful look. She just frowned lightly at his words, not quite knowing what to say in return but Fili just gave her a small smile before he turned away and followed after his brother, leaving only Gandalf standing there with her. Cinna smiled up at the wizard, turning the marble he had given her between her fingers as she spoke.

"Farewell, dear wizard," she uttered, seeing Gandalf giving her a warm smile in return as he nodded lightly. He watched as she turned her back on him and walked slowly toward the bushes before her, her body becoming translucent as her pale skin touched the green leaves around her. It was only a moment before she had vanished completely from the wizard's sight. Gandalf chuckled quietly to himself, lingering another moment before he slowly made his way back to the dwarves' camp, as well.


	3. Three's a charm

**And one more! I'm rather fast these days, don't know what that's all about! :D**

**Thanks to _TerraMacMillan_, _Kikiwakokoda_, _Guest_, _Snowball A.K.A. WinterWolf_ and _Eruwaedhiel95_ for your reviews! I really enjoyed reading your opinions on the story so far! I hope you'll continue reading to see what Cinna has in store for our lads :D**

**Thanks also to the followers and favouriters! Always appreciated!**

**Now, go and read, and maybe leave me some of your thoughts if you like? :)**

* * *

><p>Cinna's path led her away from the dwarves, and though she didn't have an idea of where she even wanted to go, she knew that staying close to them would only mean trouble for her. And she wasn't too fond of trouble. As a wood fae, she appreciated the lively beauty of nature, the quiet purling of a stream or the sound of the wind in the leaves of the trees above her. She liked small things, shiny things and sweet things. To be the target of the moods of several grumpy dwarves wasn't anything she was particularly keen on. Although she did have to admit that she was curious – at least about some of them.<p>

As she swept along the trees, the fae enjoyed the feeling of the soft ground beneath her feet, caring little about the worries of the world around her. She didn't need to, after all. She was only a simple wood fairy – as Gandalf had said – content to live among the plants and animals that were her dear companions in life. It was a quiet life she led but a good one. For her, in the woods, in nature, time did not flow as fast as it did in the world around her, everything was calmer, slow and steady, a perfect rhythm that had been going since the beginning of time. Nature meant balance and balance, for Cinna, meant everything.

It was so, as she drifted through the forest, with the wind in her hair and the summery green leaves brushing against her every now and then, that she spent the time that followed after her encounter with the dwarves. Cinna couldn't tell after a while how many days had passed since, or if it had been weeks already. She didn't care, either, in fact, had forgotten about it almost, the incident a simple unimportant – yet curious – memory in her mind when one night, she stumbled upon them again. Yet, this time no one glared at her, for none of them noticed her presence anyway. Tied up in stinking sacks, carelessly thrown into a pile, she found the strange company of dwarves in a clearing where three big trolls had decided to have their dinner.

It was the fire that had drawn her near, as it had the night she had met Fili and Kili, the glowing embers a beautiful and fascinating thing to her as they rose toward the sky and then vanished before ever reaching it. She had been walking high among the branches of trees when she'd seen the faint glow in the distance and only when she had reached the edge of the clearing, looking down into it from where she stood at the top of a tree, holding on to the trunk without fear of falling, she saw the dwarves. Those of them not tied up in sacks in a pile roasting over the fire she had wanted to see, many of them cursing and shouting at something or someone that she couldn't see. Cinna looked at the scene with a frown, wondering why on earth they had ever gone so close to three trolls when they were so obviously very dangerous in the first place. The fae merely stood and watched for a moment, frowning when it began to seem like they had no way of escape at all. She didn't particularly like these dwarves, but she did not want them to be eaten by trolls, either. She wished no ill fate to any of them. And so she gracefully climbed down the tree and moved around the clearing, hidden from sight among leaves and bushes that granted her invisibility until she suddenly heard twigs snapping near her. Quickly turning her head and moving in the direction of the noise, she saw the wizard, Gandalf, making his way through the thicket.

"Gandalf the Grey," Cinna called softly as she stepped out of her hiding spot and became visible, startling the wizard as he whipped his head in her direction. A surprised smile came to play on his lips beneath his beard as he looked at her.

"Cinna, my dear," he uttered, nodding at her. "How curious that you should be here just as…" he trailed off, giving her a strange look before he cleared his throat and continued with a small nod in the direction of the clearing. "Well, it seems as though the dwarves are in a bit of trouble at the moment. Trolls, you see, nasty business."

"You will help them?" Cinna asked, though it was less of a question than the seeking of confirmation from the wizard. He was a wizard after all, Cinna thought; surely he knew what to do in such a situation. Gandalf hummed lightly in reply while he nodded.

"I entirely intend to, be assured, though I am not quite certain yet what can be done against these trolls as long as the night still reigns over the forest," he said with a thoughtful look, causing the fae to frown slightly at him before her face lit up with an idea.

"It is almost dawn," she answered, suddenly overcome by an intense want to help, to be of use in this dire situation, not noticing the strangely calm look Gandalf was giving her while she spoke. "I know this forest like the back of my hand. There is a boulder at the eastern edge of the clearing; the trolls have set up their fire before it. The sun will already have begun to rise behind it, it is only because of that boulder that they are sheltered from it. If you were to take it down, break it somehow, the sun would seep through and turn the trolls to stone."

Now Gandalf did look slightly impressed and he quickly nodded and followed as the fae made her way swiftly through the bushes, almost too fast for the wizard to keep up as he kept getting tangled in some of the twigs with his long robes. It did not take long until they had reached the boulder she had described and indeed, the sun was already rising at the horizon behind them as Gandalf climbed onto the rock, holding his staff in both hands as he reached the top and looked down at the scene of three trolls attempting to cook a bunch of dwarves.

"The dawn will take you all!" he called loudly, voice echoing over the clearing as the trolls' heads turned towards him, all of them looking equally confused.

"Who's that?" One asked.

"No idea," another answered.

"Can we eat him, too?" the third wondered before Gandalf finally brought down his magic staff on the boulder he was standing on, breaking it clean in half and letting the sun's bright light leap into the clearing, turning the three huge trolls into stone where they stood.

Cinna smiled ever so slightly as she heard the happy and relieved laughter of the dwarves and as Gandalf climbed down the now broken rock while the dwarves began to free themselves of their bindings and sacks, she ventured forward into the clearing to take a closer look at the stone trolls. They were huge, now forever bound to stay in the position they had been in when the rays of the sun hit them. The fae slowly walked around one of them, coming to stand in front of one that had been frozen in a ducked position, bringing its massive head level with her height. Cinna stood before the stony face, inspecting every large and disproportioned feature closely, eyes roaming curiously over each detail. She flinched when a voice behind her interrupted her thoughts roughly.

"Oh, _by Mahal_, not you again!"

A sour expression worked its way onto her face as she took a small breath and turned to face the brunet dwarf to whom the voice belonged. Kili stood a few metres away from her, had caught sight of the fae while he had been putting his coat back on, still adjusting several of his layers now as he glared at her.

"What is it with you? I thought faes were supposed to live hidden from sight yet you seem to turn up at every corner!"

Cinna's eyes widened slightly upon his unfriendly words, her fists clenching at her sides. But before she could say anything in return, Gandalf stepped up beside her, shooting Kili a scolding glance. "Now, now. There is no need for such rudeness, Kili, if anything you should thank her. For it was Cinna's idea to split the boulder in half and turn the trolls to stone before you all got made into dinner."

Kili hesitated a moment, shooting another glance at the fae before he nodded at the wizard, slightly inclining his head before he abruptly turned away and walked over to his brother who stood a bit further away. Fili looked up as the brunet reached him and upon listening to his brother for a moment – words that Cinna could not hear from this distance – the blond dwarf glanced in their direction, eyebrows raised in surprise, though he shot the fae a friendly smile as he caught her gaze. Cinna returned it happily, shortly wondering whether she should go over and talk to him when her thoughts were once more interrupted by a deep baritone voice coming from their right, and she turned her head to see Thorin walking up to Gandalf and her.

"And where did you go to if I may ask?" the dwarf asked the wizard sceptically, only shooting a short glance in her direction before Gandalf answered.

"To look ahead."

"What brought you back?" Thorin demanded, looking back at the wizard with his eyebrows raised questioningly. Gandalf merely tilted his head at his smaller opposite.

"Looking behind," he answered calmly, causing the dwarf to incline his head shortly in a small thankful gesture. Gandalf hummed quietly as he looked around the company that was scattered in small groups around the clearing before he continued. "Nasty business. Still, they are all in one piece. With a little help, of course."

Thorin's eyebrows rose once more. "No thanks to your burglar," he said, making Cinna wonder what they could possibly need a burglar for. This company seemed to be getting more curious by the minute. Meanwhile Gandalf gave Thorin a pointed look as he replied.

"He had the nous to play for time," the wizard said. "None of the rest of you thought of that. Had it not been for Bilbo – and in fact, dear Cinna here, – I might not have been in time."

The fae stiffened slightly as Thorin's heavy gaze came to rest on her for a moment, eyeing her warily if not exactly in a hostile way. He had a strange sort of authority to him, she thought as she returned his gaze quietly, an aura of importance somehow. The dwarf seemed to consider Gandalf's words while looking at her and it was a moment later that – much to Cinna's surprise – he lightly bowed his head at her, signalling silent gratitude for her help. She said nothing and did nothing in return but Thorin could see in her forest green eyes that she held no ill will toward him for his previous behaviour towards her.

"They must have come down from the Ettenmoors," Gandalf was muttering next to them and it was at those words that Cinna turned away from Thorin and looked up at the wizard before her eyes fell on the three stone trolls. A frown came to play on her forehead as Thorin spoke.

"Since when do mountain trolls travel this far south?" he asked quietly and turned his head in surprise when it was not Gandalf who answered but the fae who now had a strangely worried expression on her face.

"Not for an age," she muttered quietly, her gaze set on the creatures turned to stone. "Not since a darker power ruled these lands. These woods have been free of trolls for many, many years."

Her gaze flicked away from the trolls and first to Gandalf who looked equally as disturbed by the news as she was, before she met Thorin's eyes. The dwarf looked at her quietly before he slightly nodded his head at her.

"They cannot have moved in daylight," he said and Cinna nodded in return. "There must be a cave nearby."

The fae watched him look around for a moment before he seemed to decide on a direction, after which the dark-haired dwarf promptly left them standing there and turned to his companions. "Ori, Dori, Oìn, quickly go and gather our things from the camp," he ordered loudly as the dwarves rushed to comply. "Then come after us. The rest of you come with me to find the troll cave. There might yet be something of use to find there."

And with that the whole company was set in motion, and Cinna was left standing there on her own as Gandalf went to join Thorin at the head of the group as they made their way into the bushes. The fae stood indecisively for a moment, pondering whether to follow the dwarves or not. She had no business with them after all and curious though she was as to what kind of adventurous trouble they would stumble into next, she couldn't imagine that any of them would be very pleased to see any more of her.

"Are you coming?"

With a start, Cinna whipped her head around to see Fili standing next to her, eyebrows raised and a small smile playing on his lips beneath his moustache, which had little braids in it she realized only now. Her mouth opened in turn, though no word came out, for she was too surprised by his question. "I… I am not sure I am welcome," she finally managed to say, which only caused Fili's smile to brighten in return.

"Oh, sure you are," he chuckled, the sound making her smile slightly as well. "You've helped us out of trouble twice already if Gandalf's words are anything to go by. And, between us, they usually are. If you would like to see the troll hoard, by all means, come."

He held out a hand as if to guide her in the right direction and now Cinna's smile widened ever so slightly as she gave a short nod, following after the blond dwarf as he retrieved his hand and marched along the way his companions had gone.

"May I ask something?" Fili uttered after a short while of them walking together, his booted feet leaving deep footprints on the ground, whereas her bare feet barely left a trace to find. The fae shot him a short sideways glance as she let one of her hands slide along the bushes that lined their way, letting the leaves run through her fingers.

"You may."

She caught the smile he sent her way out of the corner of her eye before he spoke. "How come you were with Gandalf earlier?"

Cinna looked over at Fili as she answered, stepping over roots and bumps on the ground without even having to look. Fili noticed this, but didn't comment. "It was a chance meeting. I came for the fire and found trolls instead."

"The fire?" Fili inquired with a curiously raised eyebrow as he returned her gaze. "Is that what drew you to Kili and I's camp as well? You seemed rather captivated by it, I remember."

The fae just tilted her head with a soft smile, confirming Fili's thoughts. The dwarf watched her for a moment before he smiled as well and nodded. It wasn't long until they reached the troll cave and though Cinna received a few odd looks when the rest of the dwarves realized that she had come along, none of them said anything when she came to wait outside the cave. She didn't particularly want to go in, for the stench from inside it carried over even to where she was standing beside Fili who didn't seem very keen on entering either. He stood next to her with his arms crossed loosely over his chest, keeping up the light conversation they had started before, much to Cinna's delight. She did not get to talk to people much and so enjoyed his friendly and bright demeanour greatly.

"I wanted to say… Well, I wanted to thank you again for your help. Not only today but when you helped pull Kili out of the river," Fili was saying, though he stopped shortly when he noticed the sour expression on the fae's face, interpreting it as a reaction to his brother's name and the way Kili had behaved toward her. "I know he's not been overly affable with you, but he's really not usually –"

"Oh, it's not that," Cinna interrupted him with a small smile, waving her hand dismissively, though she did shoot a small glance in the direction of the cave where Kili had disappeared. "It's just that… you said thank you."

Fili frowned slightly at her, obviously confused. "You make it sound like that's a bad thing."

She smiled at him. "You do not know much about faes, do you?" Fili shook his head and she continued, explaining herself quietly. "Fairies do not like being told 'thank you'. We see it as a sign of one forgetting the good deed done. Instead, a fae wants something that will guarantee remembrance."

The blond dwarf's frown deepened, though he leaned forward slightly with interest. "I see. I shall remember that. And what kind of thing would such be?"

"Anything, really."

Fili leaned back and thought about that for a moment before he remembered how Gandalf had handled the situation by the river. "Like a marble, perhaps?"

The fae grinned at him in return, nodding her head as she fumbled out the item from a hidden pocket of her flimsy green clothing. "For example," she confirmed, turning the little blue marble in her hand before she put it back into her pocket. Fili opened his mouth to say something when the rest of the company came walking back out of the troll cave and he met his brother's gaze as he walked out into the sun. The blond dwarf frowned slightly at the dark look Kili was sending them and quickly turned to Cinna with an apologetic smile.

"May I leave you for a little while?" he spoke. "I would like to talk to my brother for a moment."

"Oh, don't worry, Fili," a voice spoke from beside them before Cinna could reply. They both turned their heads to see Gandalf standing there together with Bilbo, the hobbit holding a small sword in his hands. "We'll be perfectly happy to keep our fae company for the time being. Won't we, Bilbo?"

"Y-yes," the hobbit stuttered quickly, before clearing his throat. "Of course."

Fili shot the fae a last smile before he turned and walked over to his little brother who was standing near Bifur, watching the dwarf who had an axe in his head as he sorted through all kinds of useless stuff from the troll hoard.


	4. Running

**Here we go again!**

**_okgurl87_: I'm very glad you liked the last chapter! Cinna is really not big, she's about as tall as Bilbo, however more slender and petite, so seeming even a bit smaller than him yet.**

**_Eruwaedhiel95_: Yes, Fili's just a sweetheart :D Kili's still a bit grumpy, yeah, let's see how long he can keep that up :D**

**Thanks to _bloodyrose1294_, _colormespiffy22 _and_ xBBx _for your reviews! I really loved reading your opinions!**

**Also thanks to the followers and favouriters! I highly appreciate it!**

**Now on to the chapter! I'd love to hear from you! :)**

* * *

><p>"What's the matter with you?" Fili asked as he arrived next to his little brother who didn't look up at him as Bifur handed him the skull of an animal without any sign or word of explanation. Kili frowned, turning the skull over in his hands before he raised his gaze and shot his brother a questioning look.<p>

"Pardon?"

Fili just raised his eyebrows at him pointedly. "You know exactly what I mean. I always thought you liked females of any sort, how come you're sending Cinna such dark looks?"

"I'm not sending her any such looks. In fact, I'm not looking at her at all." Kili answered, his tone slightly indignant as he threw the animal skull he'd still been holding into the bushes. Fili was about to reply to that, an incredulous frown on his face, when the brunet continued, his voice now gaining a very annoyed tint. "I'm just wondering what she's still doing here, is all. A fae doesn't belong here. We're on a quest, for Mahal's sake, she should go back to her _trees_ and _rivers_, which apparently she knows so well."

Fili said nothing in return, simply giving his brother an odd look as he shook his head at him. He couldn't understand why his brother seemed so annoyed by the fae, for Fili found her rather entertaining and pleasant to talk to. Not to mention that she had helped save Kili from the river after she'd warned him before he fell in, though maybe it was exactly that which had hurt Kili's pride enough to foster annoyance. She wasn't exactly very hard on the eyes either and Fili was sure that even Kili would have had to admit as much if he were being completely honest. Why not enjoy her company as long as she was still around before they moved on?

"Well," Fili finally said diplomatically, causing his little brother to glance at him again. "I'm sure she'll be going back wherever it is she came from soon enough, you won't have to worry about that any more."

Kili just huffed quietly in reply as Fili shot him a last look before he turned and moved to walk back towards the red-haired fae who was currently having a rather animated conversation with Bilbo as far as he could see. Fili had made it halfway towards the little group when suddenly, loud cracks and noises sounded from within the forest to their right and he quickly spun around and drew one of his swords as Thorin shouted.

"Something's coming!"

"Gandalf –" Bilbo started from where he was standing next to the wizard and the fae who looked slightly puzzled at the sudden commotion that was going on around her. The hobbit was holding his small sword sheathed tightly in one hand, his wide eyes trained on the grey wizard. Gandalf talked over the Halfling as he walked further into the group who began running into the woods toward the noise.

"Stay together!" Gandalf called as he held tightly to his staff. "Hurry now! Arm yourselves!"

Cinna stood for a moment longer beside Bilbo as the hobbit watched the others go, curious as to what he'd do next. The Halfling slowly unsheathed his sword and looked down at it before he shot the fae a short look, nervousness shimmering in his eyes. Cinna merely tilted her head at him, smiling friendly before she motioned for him to follow the dwarves, which Bilbo did quickly, turning to check whether the fae was coming with him. Cinna only hesitated for a moment, her curiosity winning the fight against her fear of possible danger. They were in the woods, she thought, if the need occurred, she could still simply disappear into the leaves and never be seen again.

It was only a few moments until they had caught up with the company of dwarves and Cinna stood close to Bilbo as the hobbit held his sword clumsily in one hand, pointing it in the direction where the cracks of twigs and the rustle of leaves had now become considerably louder. The fae slightly strained her neck to have a better view from the very back of the group as suddenly, something big came crashing through the trees, accompanied by screaming. "Thieves! Fire! Murder!"

It took everyone a moment until they realized that it was no orc or other dangerous thing but a strange man on a sled pulled by large rabbits. As the expressions on the dwarves' faces turned into complete confusion, Cinna's face lit up with a bright smile upon seeing Radagast the Brown. She quickly made her way through the group, squeezing and ducking along the dwarves who all grumbled slightly as she passed them to get to the front where Gandalf was now addressing the brown wizard.

"Radagast! Radagast the Brown!" he exclaimed in surprise. "What on earth are you doing here?"

"I was looking for you Gandalf!" his friend replied, his tone urgent as he looked at Gandalf. "Something's wrong. Something's terribly wrong."

Cinna frowned deeply at this, observing the brown wizard as Gandalf looked at him quizzically. "Yes?"

Radagast opened his mouth to speak and the fae watched him expectantly before he suddenly shut his mouth again, not saying anything. He opened his mouth again, only to close it once more right after, frowning in confusion. Cinna's eyebrows rose in slight amusement as she realized that the wizard had forgotten what he wanted to say.

"Oh, just give me a minute," he said then, scrunching his face up in thought. "Oh, I had a thought, and now I've lost it. It was… it was right there, on the tip of my tongue."

The dwarves watched with confusion and slight disgust as Radagast curled his tongue, a surprised look suddenly coming to play on his face. "Oh, it's not a thought at all!" he exclaimed with his mouth open and tongue sticking out. "It's a silly old –"

Cinna heard a few disgusted noises from the dwarves around her as Gandalf reached out and pulled a live insect out of Radagast's mouth.

" – stick insect!"

Gandalf only raised his eyebrows slightly at his friend before he turned his head and saw Cinna standing close beside him at the front of the group of dwarves, and he slowly bent down and held out the stick insect that was sitting on the palm of his hand. The fae smiled up at him as she reached out her hand and took the small animal carefully, gingerly holding it in her hand as Gandalf turned back to the brown wizard.

"Just throw it away," someone said next to her as she looked down at the little insect on her palm and she turned her head to see that she had been standing right next to Kili the whole time. Her eyes narrowed slightly at the dismissive tone of his voice. He raised his eyebrows slightly, shrugging his shoulders. "It's just an insect. Step on it if you must."

"Even small lives have worth, Master Dwarf," she answered him, her voice quiet but stern as she turned away from the brunet dwarf and walked a few steps over to some bushes, holding out her hand and letting the insect slowly climb from her palm onto the leaves. She watched until it was walking safely along the small twigs of the bush before she returned to her spot next to Kili, giving him a disappointed look. "It is a pity if you cannot see that."

Kili opened his mouth to say something but Cinna merely turned away from him and walked over to stand next to Bilbo instead who shot her a small smile as she reached him. He was standing near Radagast's rabbits, petting one of them behind the ears gently. Cinna smiled slightly to herself before her gaze wandered over to where Gandalf and Radagast were talking a few paces away from the company in private.

"This is not from the world of the living," the brown wizard was saying, showing Gandalf a blade wrapped in cloth. They shared a concerned look as Gandalf rewrapped the item and gripped it tightly.

"If what you say is true, I must talk to the White Council about this. I shall keep this for now, and bring it to Rivendell," he said, putting the cloth-wrapped package into one of the many large pockets of his robe.

Radagast just nodded but Gandalf still looked concerned, shooting a short glance over to the company of dwarves, who were all talking among each other before finally he nodded as well, sighing quietly to himself. "Very well," he started, "I shall –"

His words were interrupted by a loud howl suddenly echoing through the forest and he quickly exchanged a look with Radagast as they hurried back to the group. The dwarves all had their weapons drawn once more and Bilbo looked around nervously as he walked a few steps away from the rabbits. "Was that a wolf? Are there wolves in these woods?"

"There aren't," Cinna muttered to herself with wide eyes without anyone hearing her as Bofur spoke up at the same time.

"Wolves? No, that was no wolf," the dwarf with the funny hat said, looking around as another howl sounded through the forest, closer this time. It was only a second later that Cinna felt herself being roughly grabbed by the upper arm and pulled to the side, the sudden contact of skin on skin completely throwing her off guard, as she was not used to it at all. Thrown by the sudden strong pull, she lost her balance and stumbled into Fili as he pushed himself in front of her at the same moment that she saw a huge warg being taken down by an arrow between the eyes, shot by none other than Kili before it could bury its teeth in Thorin. Dwalin and Thorin finished the beast off with axe and sword.

The sudden danger rendered the fae momentarily immovable, her eyes wide as she saw another warg emerge from the bushes and jump right into their midst, knocking over one of the dwarves whose name she didn't know yet, one with braided grey hair. She flinched as Thorin reacted immediately and drove his sword into the beast's body, killing it without any mercy.

"Warg-scouts!" he said then, looking down at the dead beast with disgust. "Which means an Orc pack is not far behind!"

"O-orc pack?" Stuttered Bilbo and although Cinna felt frightened and would normally long have disappeared into the bushes by now, she oddly found herself stepping closer to Fili's back instead, one of her hands coming up to bury her fingers in the fabric of his coat sleeve. The blond dwarf only shot her a small sideways glance before he looked back at his uncle.

"Who did you tell about your quest? Beyond your kin?" Gandalf asked then, causing Thorin to frown at the wizard.

"No one."

"Who did you tell?!" Gandalf demanded again and Thorin's frown deepened, though Cinna saw his gaze shortly drift towards her before his brows knit together seemingly in dismissal of a thought he'd just had. The fae wondered what it had been, but there was no time to ask.

"No one, I swear!" the dark-haired dwarf said then. "What in Durin's name is going on?"

Gandalf's expression darkened slightly as he looked at the dwarf before him. "You are being hunted."

Cinna felt her brows knit together, her fingers digging deeper into Fili's sleeve. It was the large bald-headed dwarf, Dwalin, who spoke next.

"We have to get out of here."

"We can't! We have no ponies, they've bolted!" another said then and nervous murmurs ran through the company, the dwarves exchanging glances as they thought of what to do next. To everyone's surprise, it was Radagast who suddenly spoke up after not having said anything the whole time.

"I'll draw them off!"

"That is madness," Gandalf quickly replied, shaking his head at his friend. "These are Gundabad wargs. They will outrun you."

Radagast merely lifted his eyebrows at the grey wizard pointedly, nodding towards the rabbits that pulled his sled. "These are Rhosgobel rabbits. I'd like to see them try!"

Gandalf hesitated a moment before finally he nodded and turned to the rest of the company. "We shall wait until Radagast is out of the forest and then we'll make our escape over the plain."

The dwarves simply nodded in unison when one of them suddenly spoke up, pointing at the fae that still stood among them. "What about her?" asked Bofur and many of the dwarves only seemed to realize that she was still here now that he had pointed her out to them. Cinna shrank slightly behind Fili's back as their gazes suddenly all flicked to her, her slender fingers still on the blond dwarf's arm.

"She's coming with you, of course," Radagast provided from where he was now already in position on his sled, looking at them as if this were completely obvious. Many of the dwarves sent him dark looks upon that assumption, obviously not very happy with the proposal.

"No," Thorin said sternly. "She has no business with us. She can fend for herself."

"We cannot just leave her on her own, what if something happens to her?" Bilbo spoke, earning himself a dark look from the dark-haired dwarf but he stood tall beneath Thorin's gaze, nodding his head as if to make his point. Cinna felt a small smile appear on her face upon the hobbit's worry for her. It was very kind of Bilbo to care about her safety; she'd never had anyone worry for her before. However, she had never actually experienced danger – imminent, life-threating danger – as this before, anyway.

"Bilbo is right," Gandalf spoke then, observing the fae calmly where she still stood half hidden behind Fili's broad frame. The dwarf did nothing to step away from her. "The wargs will pick up her scent, and though you are fast, Cinna, you cannot outrun these beasts."

The fae shook her head slightly, her eyes filled with fear, and quickly turned as another voice joined the conversation. "But she can make herself invisible!" Kili said as he stepped forward, only shooting a short glance toward her. "She can disappear, I've seen it with my own eyes. They'll never find her."

"Just because you can't see her, doesn't mean she is not still there," Gandalf answered sternly, shooting the young dwarf a slightly scolding look. "She may not be visible but she won't have to be if these creatures pick up her scent. Her cover will not hold. They'll find her and they'll mangle her without any mercy."

Cinna's body went completely rigid at the wizard's harsh words, her eyes wide with the horror of them, and she shortly caught Kili's gaze as he looked over at her, his expression suddenly showing a small amount of worry now as he bit his lip. It was right at that moment that another howl sounded through the trees and they could hear the orcs shouting orders at each other from a distance, not yet visible from where they were huddled by a large rock at the edge of the forest.

"Enough!" Thorin ended the discussion abruptly, his face stony as he spoke. He shot the fae a short look, his eyes hard. "We have no time. She comes with us. Move, now!"

And with that, Radagast gave his rabbits the command to run and off he was in a flash of dust, crashing through the trees, drawing the orcs away from them. Gandalf waited a moment until they could hear the orc pack following the brown wizard before he turned to the company and urged them on. "Come on! Quickly!"

Cinna felt Fili grab her arm again, his large hand wrapping easily around her limb as he pulled her along behind him. They left the edge of the forest – and with it all that had granted Cinna safety before now – behind and ran into a rocky plain, moving along the large boulders that hid them from the orcs' sight while Radagast chased over the plain, orcs and wargs following on his heels. The fae ran along as they rushed across the plain, over and over hiding behind large rocks when the orc pack came too close.

Her breathing was fast and ragged, though more out of fear than actually being out of breath. She was used to running, did it all the time in the woods, and so didn't tire very fast. Fili's hand was still wrapped tightly around her arm.

"Stay together!" Gandalf urged them as Thorin ordered them to move again once the orc pack was out of immediate sight, hurrying them along the rocks only to hide behind another one not too long after so as to not be seen by their hunters. Cinna watched as Thorin held one of his companions back by the collar to stop him from running out of their cover.

"Ori! No, come back!"

"Come on! Quick!" Gandalf called and as they continued running, Cinna had lost all orientation, not knowing where the dwarves were taking her, but she still kept running as Fili pulled her along, for there was no other choice now. She did not even have the possibility to become invisible any longer, for there were not enough leaves, bushes and trees for it outside of the woods.

"Where are you leading us?" Thorin yelled towards Gandalf as the wizard led on, though he received no answer as the company followed him further across the plain and Cinna almost lost her balance once more when they suddenly took cover behind an outcropping of rock when Fili brought her to an abrupt stop by pulling her back. His hand left her arm and instead his own arm came to lie over her stomach as he pressed her into the stony wall behind them.

It was then that she suddenly heard it, the low growl that came from above their heads. Without thinking about it, the fae looked up, feeling as though her blood would freeze when she saw the large warg paw shuffling on the rock above her. Fili pressed her further into the stone and as her gaze flew back to her current companions, she saw Thorin nodding silently at Kili, who then lifted his arm to the quiver on his back, before he suddenly stepped forward and turned at the same time, notching an arrow and releasing it before Cinna could even blink. A pained howl confirmed that he had hit his mark as the warg and its rider fell from the rock onto the ground before them. The sound of their fight silenced quickly, but not quickly enough as Dwalin and Gloìn finished them off. The roars and screams had carried far and now the orc pack had become aware of the dwarves that were trying to escape in secret.

"Move," Gandalf urged then, as the pack stopped pursuing Radagast and instead turned to them, coming towards the company at full speed. "RUN!"

Fili grabbed Cinna's arm again and pulled her with him as they ran, along the plain and over a grassy field as the orcs began to surround them, slowly but surely.

"There they are!" Someone shouted as they came to a short halt, seeing wargs approaching from every direction. Fili let go of the fae's arm then and pushed her behind him as he pulled his second sword.

"There's more coming!" Kili shouted from a little distance away from them, looking back to his uncle for any kind of order.

"Kili! Shoot them!" the dark-haired dwarf shouted, having his own sword drawn and ready to fight as chaos erupted around them, many of the dwarves yelling frantically at the same time.

"We're surrounded!" shouted Fili as his little brother began to shoot arrows at wargs and warg riders, killing some of them as they came closer. The blond dwarf watched as the orcs came closer, shortly turning his head to the fae that was standing behind him, eyes wide with terror as she stared at the scene that unfolded around her. "Take the knife from my belt!"

Her wide eyes turned to him as he addressed her loudly, emerald green uncomprehending as he yelled at her. "You need a weapon! Grab the knife on my belt!" he repeated impatiently and now Cinna's gaze flicked to the belt around his waist before she reached out a trembling hand and grabbed one of the smaller knives that were strapped there. Holding it clumsily in her hand by the hilt, she gripped it tightly as he moved them both backwards to where Gandalf had been before.

"Where's Gandalf?" Kili shouted then and upon turning their heads, the company saw that the wizard had disappeared all of a sudden.

"He's abandoned us!" Dwalin roared in reply, smashing his axe into the skull of a warg that had come too close. The dwarves gathered closer to each other near the rock they had last seen Gandalf by. Ori shot a rock at one of the orcs with his slingshot, to no effect.

"Hold your ground!" Thorin yelled over the plain as Fili rammed his swords into the body of a warg that had reached them, killing the beast and moving further back towards his uncle. It was then that they suddenly heard Gandalf's voice again as his head popped up from a crack in the rock.

"This way, you fools!" he called and disappeared again as Thorin called for all of them to move to where Gandalf was hiding. The dwarves slid into the crack one after the other and Fili, after killing another warg, turned and ushered Cinna in the direction. He lifted her by the waist without any hesitation and let her slide down into the crack before he followed, leaving only Thorin and Kili outside of the cave that the crack led into.

Cinna fell on the ground of the cave with a small groan as her bare arm scratched against the hard rocky surface, though she was quickly grabbed and pulled to her feet by Bofur before Fili came tumbling down into the cave, landing right where she had been before. The fae shot the hatted dwarf a grateful look and helped pull Fili to his feet as Thorin and Kili came sliding down into the cave. The blond dwarf gave her a little once-over to see if she was alright and she simply tried to smile at him before flinching violently and stumbling a step back when the body of a dead orc came crashing down into their midst from the top of the cave. Cinna shrank back against Bofur who was standing behind her, simply staring at the dead creature as Thorin unceremoniously pulled an arrow out of its skull.

"Elves," he concluded with a disgusted tone as he threw the arrow away. For a moment, they all simply stood together in the cave, catching their breath and listening to the elven horns that sounded from outside the cave. It was a moment later that Dwalin pointed out a pathway at one end of the cave that led away.

"I cannot see where it leads," the large dwarf said, looking at Thorin. "Do we follow it or not?"

"Follow it, of course!" Bofur exclaimed from behind Cinna and she flinched slightly at the sound of his voice, only now tearing her gaze away from the dead orc on the ground before her. She blinked dumbly for a moment, hesitating as the dwarves began to follow Gandalf down the pathway.

"Are you alright?" a voice suddenly came from her left and she quickly turned her head, expecting Fili but coming face to face with his little brother instead. Kili was looking at her questioningly, if ever a little worried, for he had noticed the way she had been staring at the dead orc before. The brunet dwarf eyed her attentively as she gave a jerky little nod, not believing her for a second. The fae looked shaken, her fiery red hair a wild mess, many of the colourful petals that she kept in it having fallen from it during the chase, her eyes were still wide and fearful, her bare feet mucky from the running through the dirt. There was a small scratch on her right arm that was bleeding very slightly, and she trembled all over. Her hand was clamped tightly around a knife that she didn't have before, though Kili combined rather quickly that it must be one of Fili's, which he had given her to defend herself.

With a small sigh, Kili reached out and touched her shoulder, feeling her skin cold beneath his touch as he gently peeled the knife from her grasp. She didn't even really seem to notice that she had still been holding it, only glancing down at it briefly before Kili sheathed it on his belt. He would give it back to Fili later.

"Come on, then," he muttered quietly, using his hand on her shoulder to lead her, the brunet dwarf turned her slowly toward the pathway. The fae didn't say anything as he guided her along the path after the rest of the company, and he didn't speak any more either, only kept his hand on her shoulder to give her at least some sense of security.


	5. Friends

**Wheew, new chapter!**

**_Jenny-Wren28_: I'm glad you liked the last chapters! Well, choosing to be on ship Fili is an alright choice, since he's being much nicer to our fae than his brother at the moment :D I'm curious whether your ship will change with time :D**

**Thanks to _The Clown Princess_, _TerraMacMillan_, _bloodyrose1294_, _xoxo_ and _Eruwaedhiel95_ for your reviews! I highly enjoy reading your opinions, guys!**

**Thanks to those who followed and favourited! You guys are accumulating very quickly it seems! I like it! :D**

**So, here we go! Hope you enjoy this chapter and you leave me some of your thoughts at the end!**

* * *

><p>It took a while until they finally reached the end of the pathway, which led ahead narrowly between two high rock walls until it eventually opened out into a small clearing at the top of a steep cliff. It was only when the fae walked out of the shadowy pathway behind Bilbo and the sun hit Cinna's face once again after walking for so long along the dark path that she finally blinked and looked up, seemingly waking from a dream. She only registered faintly how Kili guided her a bit further through the group that had now come to a halt to stand next to his big brother before his hand disappeared from her shoulder and he took his position on Fili's other side. The blond dwarf looked over at the fae with a smile as she arrived next to him, though it quickly faltered when he became aware of her shaken state. For a moment, he wanted to say something and ask her what was wrong but his thoughts were interrupted when Gandalf spoke up, addressing the valley that lay before them and the city that was in it.<p>

"The valley of Imladris," the wizard exclaimed as he addressed what all the dwarves were staring at from the top of the cliff, and Cinna's eyes widened slightly as she beheld the beauty of the illustrious Elven city from afar. "Though in the common tongue, it's known by another name."

"Rivendell," Bilbo breathed from where he was standing next to the wizard and Cinna couldn't help but smile slightly at the awe she heard in his voice. Gandalf merely nodded at the hobbit's comment, smiling lightly as well beneath his bushy grey beard.

"Here lies the last Homely House east of the sea," he said with a smile, though he was quickly and rather harshly interrupted by Thorin, and as Cinna turned to look at them, she frowned slightly at the angry look on the dwarf's face.

"This was your plan all along!" he accused the wizard with a low growl. "To seek refuge with our enemies!"

The fae's frown deepened at the word 'enemies', for she had always thought the Elves to be one of the most dignified and friendly people in Middle-Earth. It seemed strange to her that they would be considered the enemies of anyone who did not belong to evil. Gandalf seemed to have heard this before though, or so it seemed to her at least, for his expression quickly turned into annoyance as he looked at Thorin.

"You have no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield. The only ill-will to be found in this valley is that which you bring yourself!"

Cinna's eyebrows rose at the wizard's words and she glanced at Thorin as he hesitated a moment upon Gandalf's scolding before he continued, less loudly this time but still angry. "You think the Elves will give our quest their blessing? They will try to stop us!"

"What is this quest of yours?" Cinna asked curiously in a whisper, leaning slightly toward Fili who only shook his head at her, following the exchange between his uncle and the wizard quietly. The fae raised her eyebrows at him questioningly, her curiosity only increasing, and after a moment the blond dwarf discretely leaned his head down to answer her.

"It's a secret," Fili whispered back. "I can't tell you."

"Of course they will try to stop you," Gandalf continued meanwhile, drowning out their hushed conversation as he addressed Thorin again. "But we have questions that need to be answered. If we are to be successful, this will need to be handled with tact and respect… and no small degree of charm. Which is why you will leave the talking to me."

And with that he began walking down the narrow path that led into the city of Rivendell, the dwarves following him grumblingly after Thorin had given a curt nod, seeming very reluctant to follow the wizard this time. Cinna merely walked with them, not knowing where else to go. She was far from the forest she had spent the past years in and now, it seemed there was no way but to go forward, at least for the moment. The fae walked close behind Fili as they reached the bottom of the valley after a while, entering Rivendell by walking in line across a narrow stone bridge with no ledges. A few elves were strolling about without paying the group of dwarves much heed.

Cinna came to stand next to Bilbo who was looking around, admiring the beauty that Imladris had to offer. The fae, too, looked with awe at the many bridges and gardens, balconies and small waterfalls that made out the face of the city all around them.

"It's beautiful," Bilbo muttered quietly, exchanging a look with her before they both shared a small smile. "Don't you think?"

Cinna simply nodded, enjoying the small smile that kept playing on her face now once more after the fright of the chase she'd lived only a little while before, quietly grateful for the hobbit's calm and yet enthusiastic way of speaking. "Truly, it is a sight to behold," she answered quietly and Bilbo happily shared her smile again when a brown-haired elf came walking down a flight of stairs that lay before them, greeting them with a polite nod.

"Mithrandir!" He addressed Gandalf.

"Ah, Lindir," the wizard returned, turning to greet the elf with a polite smile while the dwarves behind him began murmuring amongst themselves in distrust. Cinna could see Thorin leaning in and whispering something in Dwalin's ear, though she could not hear what it was from where she was standing at the back of the group.

"I must speak with Lord Elrond," Gandalf then continued, causing his opposite to frown slightly, shaking his head.

"My Lord Elrond is not here," he answered politely and the wizard's face fell slightly upon the news, a small frown coming to play on his face.

"Not here?" he asked in confusion. "Where is he?"

Lindir had already opened his mouth to reply when suddenly, the Elvish horns from before, when they had been in the cave, sounded again and as the company turned around, they could see a group of armed elven horsemen approach along the bridge they had crossed only a few minutes ago at a rapid pace.

Cinna couldn't even react so fast as she felt a hand wrap itself around her upper arm once more and she was abruptly pulled backward into the group of dwarves who were quickly forming a protective circle around herself and Bilbo who had apparently received the same treatment as her, she realized when she glanced at him and he looked equally as surprised as she felt. The fae's eyes widened as the dwarves suddenly raised their weapons as well, holding their ranks as the horsemen surrounded them quickly, riding around the little tight circle they had formed. And the fae had to admit that she felt a bit safer in the dwarves' midst when she looked at the sheer size of the horses and elves. She was barely even half the size of those horsemen and could probably have walked easily underneath one of their horses without even having to duck her head.

Eventually, the horsemen stopped circling and one elf separated himself from the others, dismounting his horse and sending Gandalf a small smile as he approached him while his men slowly began to move on, filing further into the city and leaving the dwarves simply standing there.

"Gandalf," the dark-haired elf greeted with a smile and Cinna strained her neck to see over the dwarves' shoulders as the wizard bowed gracefully.

"Lord Elrond! Mellonnen!" he greeted and the dwarves, Bilbo and Cinna merely watched uncomprehending as the two men hugged shortly while conversing in Elvish. They exchanged a few words before Elrond suddenly spoke in the common tongue again, so that all of them could understand what he was saying.

"Strange for orcs to come this close to our borders," he said, one eyebrow raised sceptically. "Something, or _someone_, has drawn them near."

"Ah," Gandalf answered sheepishly, nodding his head as he turned to the dwarves. "Yes, that may have been us."

It was then that finally, the protective circle of the dwarves loosened up and Thorin stepped forward, regarding the tall Elf-lord with a stern look. Cinna and Bilbo moved forward at the same time in order to see a bit more of what was happening, though they were both held in their place by Bofur and Bombur, who both put a heavy hand on their respective shoulders.

"Welcome Thorin, son of Thrain," they heard Elrond greet the dwarf calmly, only causing Thorin to raise his eyebrows at him slightly.

"I do not believe we have met," he said.

Elrond only hesitated shortly before he answered. "You have your grandfather's bearing," he explained seriously. "I knew Thror when he ruled under the mountain."

"Which mountain?" Cinna whispered, turning her head in Bofur's direction only to be shushed quietly with a wave of his hand. A small unhappy pout worked its way onto the fae's face then, feeling quite annoyed at the dwarves' secrecy.

"Indeed? He made no mention of you," she then heard Thorin say and quickly turned her head upon his words, shortly catching sight of Bilbo rolling his eyes in exasperation next to her out of the corner of her eye before she saw the face of a slightly offended Lord Elrond. Once more the fae wondered why these dwarves had to be so rude sometimes, and she shot a discrete glance in Kili's direction. The brunet dwarf was standing a few feet in front of her and so didn't notice her glaring slightly at the back of his head while Lord Elrond spoke something in Elvish that none of them, except Gandalf, understood and so quickly chose to take the wrong way.

"What is he sayin'?" Gloìn growled, raising his axe in the Elf-lord's direction. "Does he offer us insult?"

Cinna raised her eyebrows in surprise at this outburst while Gandalf quickly went to clear the situation, shooting the red-haired dwarf a scolding look. "No, Master Gloìn, he is offering you _food_."

The dwarves hesitated shortly before they suddenly all huddled together, discussing the matter in hushed voices quickly. Cinna slightly shrank back against Bilbo's side as the dwarves all talked at once, fae and hobbit still in their midst.

"I could use something to eat," Bombur uttered.

"You could always use something to eat," Bofur shot back before Nori spoke up.

"I say we take the offer!"

Bifur grunted something in a harsh language that made Cinna flinch slightly as the burly dwarf with the wild dark hair had been standing right behind her. The dwarves nodded at him before turning back toward Elrond again, eyeing him up sternly.

"Ah, well," spoke Gloìn, clearing his throat slightly as he adjusted his grip on his axe. "In that case lead on."

Lord Elrond just smiled and gave a small nod before motioning for Lindir to take them into their halls. The brown-haired elf from before quickly complied and the dwarves followed him one after the other. Cinna found herself hesitating shortly before she felt someone take her hand and upon looking up, she was met with a kind smile from Fili who was pulling her along with him after the others. Although, they were stopped rather quickly as they passed Lord Elrond and Gandalf who were still standing together, watching the dwarves file into the halls of Imladris.

"Excuse me, Master Dwarf," the elf-lord spoke calmly, causing Fili to stop abruptly in his tracks and turn to look at the tall elf with a reserved look, still holding Cinna by the hand. The fae looked up at the elf as well, eyes big and curious as he shortly met her gaze. "If I may ask, how came you by such an interesting companion? Thirteen dwarves, a hobbit _and_ _a fae_," he mused, "It is rather curious, indeed."

Cinna felt Fili tense for a moment, obviously not sure what to say as he glanced from Lord Elrond to her and back again, tugging her a bit closer to his side by her hand. The fae merely watched, a small smile on her face as she waited. Seeing the proud young dwarf struggling for an explanation was a rather amusing sight, she found. "Well, that…" Fili started uncertainly.

"… is a story best told over dinner," Gandalf chimed in with a friendly smile toward his elven friend, effectively saving Fili from having to explain why the fae was in fact still with them when he didn't even really know himself how she fit into this whole story. The blond dwarf just nodded at Gandalf as the wizard sent him a small look before he quickly turned and tugged Cinna along, the fae merely following him as he hurried after the rest of his companions, smiling quietly to herself.

* * *

><p>The dwarves were swiftly showed to a large room, which had quickly been assigned to be the company's quarter for the time they would spend in Rivendell. Lindir had barely even had time to bring the large balcony to their attention that was attached to the room and spread out over one of the many gardens of Imladris when the dwarves had already thrown their packs and bedrolls on the floor, making a mess within only a couple of minutes.<p>

"Dinner shall be served in an hour," Cinna heard the tall elf say as she entered the room behind Fili as the last two, though no one seemed to listen to him at all if the dwarves' loud conversations that were going on separately were anything to go by. The fae looked up at the brunet elf as he sighed silently to himself, shooting an exasperated look around the group of dwarves before he moved to leave the room. However, he stopped shortly when he passed her and glanced down at her, a polite smile coming to play on his face as she returned his gaze. Fili had gone ahead to join his brother somewhere on the other side of the room and so she was standing alone with Lindir by the door.

"We can give you a separate chamber if you do not wish to spend the night among your companions, Milady," the elf said kindly. "I am not sure if it would be entirely appropriate. We could also run you a bath if you would like."

Cinna gratefully smiled up at the elf but shook her head ever so slightly. "That is very kind of you, but I'm afraid I have to decline your offer, though I appreciate it. I am much more keen on the outdoors than spending the night in a separate chamber. I think I'd like to use the next hour until dinner to explore the gardens instead, if that is possible."

Lindir smiled now, as well, happy that at least one person seemed to have taken notice of what he had said before. The elf nodded swiftly. "Of course," he said kindly. "I shall be looking forward to seeing you again at dinner, then."

The fae just nodded in return before the elf turned and left the room, moving down the adjacent corridor swiftly. Cinna watched him go for a moment before she turned back and crossed the room, walking past the company who now stopped doing whatever they had been busying themselves with and watched her attentively, some even sceptically, as she walked out onto the balcony that Lindir had pointed out to them before. She felt her senses calm slightly as the fresh warm summer air hit her face and she took a deep breath as she came to stand by the bannister, looking out over the vast green garden that lay beneath the balcony.

"What are we gonna do with her then?" she heard someone murmur somewhere behind her, but she didn't turn around to see whom it was, neither did she pay their hushed discussion that was now quickly starting up any heed. With a glance to her right she found a flight of stairs that led down into the garden below and without hesitating any further she quickly left the balcony and relished in the feeling of warm grass beneath her bare feet once she reached the bottom of the stairs. There was a small path of stones leading through the garden but Cinna chose to walk beside it instead, directly in the grass. Her way led her past beautiful trees and flowers until she reached a small pond by which stood a bench made of stone. The fae quickly glanced around, not seeing anyone, before she sat down by the pond's edge, slowly dipping her feet into the cool water. They cleaned rather quickly without her having to do much, the dirt of the chase coming off swiftly as she moved her little feet in the water, causing the smooth surface to break out in small waves. She reached out then, gathering some water in her cupped hands and splashing it into her face, enjoying the cooling and refreshing effect it had. She was about to do it a second time when she heard someone clear their throat behind her and she quickly turned her head to see Fili standing a few feet behind her, his eyebrows raised slightly.

"Didn't the elves offer to run you a bath?" he asked as he came closer, sitting down beside her with a small huff, crossing his legs underneath him while Cinna's still moved lightly beneath the water's surface. The fae nodded at his question. "And you refused it to instead clean yourself up in the cold, dirty water of a pond?"

"It's not dirty," the fae replied quickly, again cupping some water in her hands and holding it out to Fili so he could see how completely clear it was. It took a moment until the dwarf formed a cup with his own hands and she slowly let the water pour from her hands into his. Fili glanced down at the water in his hands and nodded after a moment, bringing it to his mouth and drinking it before he looked back up at her. The fae smiled at him. "Nature provides everything you need to get by, I don't need someone to fill a tub with water that is easily accessible to me anyway."

"Sounds reasonable," Fili said with a small smile before they both remained silent for a few moments. It was a little while until the blond dwarf spoke up again, looking at the fae from the side as she stared at the water before them with a calm expression on her face. "Say, have you ever been out of the woods before?"

Cinna didn't answer for a while and it was only when she turned her head to look at him and Fili slightly raised his eyebrows that she finally said something. "No," she just murmured quietly, shaking her head. Fili only nodded, his suspicions now confirmed. He had talked to Kili only a little while before he'd come to find her and his little brother had told her of how shaken the fae had seemed in the small cave when he had given Fili back the knife that the blond had given to Cinna. It hadn't taken Fili very long to realize why. After all, in his mind, faes did not often get chased by orcs and wargs, did not come as close to death as they had if it wasn't by nature. Fili was sure that Cinna was no stranger to death, however a natural one, by old age for example. He highly doubted that faes ever had anything to do with battles.

"I'm sorry we got you roped into this," the blond dwarf muttered after another while and Cinna looked at him quizzically. "I'm sure you would have much preferred to remain peacefully in that forest than running from orcs with us."

"It is not as if you forced me to run with you, Fili," the fae said softly and the blond looked up at her as it was the first time she'd actually said his name out loud. She gave him a small, almost rueful smile as she pulled her feet out of the water. "I had the choice to leave you to your own business and remain in the forest by myself a while before the orcs came. I didn't, and anything that happened after that comes down to me not taking that choice."

Fili frowned slightly upon her words, looking at her thoughtfully. "So, does that mean you are fine with what happened?" He highly doubted that, considering how much it had seemed to affect her before. Cinna merely huffed slightly, tilting her head at him.

"There is no one to blame but yourself if you stumble over some stones on the path you chose."

"Do you always speak in riddles?" Fili asked, a small grin tugging on the corners of his lips as he looked at the fae. Whatever she thought of the situation they had brought her into, she didn't seem to hold any ill feelings toward any of the dwarves. Fili was quite grateful for that, for he liked the fae – she was kind and unusual, and surprisingly easy to talk to – and he didn't want her to think badly of him or his companions.

"Riddles are my only way of concealing the truth," Cinna spoke then and Fili raised his eyebrows in confusion, sending her an asking look. The fae smiled, though he could see some hesitation in the depths of her emerald eyes, as if she were not sure if she should answer his unspoken question. But after a moment, Fili managed to put together the puzzle pieces himself, or at least that's what he thought when he looked at her with wide eyes.

"Your only way of concealing the truth?" he repeated and Cinna's slender eyebrows rose slightly as she observed him while his brain worked out the meaning behind her words. "Does that mean that you… you can't tell an actual lie?"

"There is no place for lies in nature," Cinna said with a small smile and Fili raised his eyebrows at her.

"Is that a yes?"

"It is not a no."

A small chuckle escaped Fili then and he lightly nudged the fae in the shoulder with his own, making her sway sideways slightly. She was now laughing quietly as well, the sound softly echoing over the small pond before them. For a moment they merely sat there, smiling to themselves in silence before Fili threw a glance toward the sky, sighing quietly as he looked back at the fae next to him. "I think it will be about time for dinner now," he said and as if on cue his stomach started to rumble quietly. Cinna glanced at his covered belly, giggling slightly as she nodded.

"It would seem like it," she said and stood up, holding out her hand to Fili who took it quickly before she helped him to his feet, her face shortly scrunching up with the effort to pull his weight from the ground. Fili just chuckled as he took some of the weight from her by pulling himself up into a standing position. He was about to turn and move back toward the halls they had come from earlier when he felt Cinna still holding on to his hand. The dwarf looked back at her over his shoulder questioningly as she still stood where she had been before, looking at him with an odd expression on her face.

"What is it?" Fili asked, slight concern etching its way into his features. Cinna shrugged lightly, glancing down at their joined hands before she looked back up at him.

"It was nice of you to come and talk to me," she then said as she released his hand and Fili smiled brightly, waving her words off with one hand.

"That's what friends do, isn't it?"

He watched as Cinna's expression turned into confusion for a moment before her face suddenly lit up with a happy smile. Fili had seen her smile before but none of her previous ones compared to this one, he thought with a small grin of his own. It was as if the sun had suddenly come out even though evening had already begun to fall around them. Somehow, her bright smile reminded him of Kili's, the blond thought quietly to himself, for he had always found his little brother's smile to light up the room as well.

"I suppose it is," she answered and Fili just smiled at her and nodded his head in the direction of the halls of Rivendell.

"Well, come on then," he said. "I'm starving."

And with that, they both moved back the way they had come, walking next to each other and keeping on talking easily about nothing that actually mattered. It didn't take them long to reach the room that the dwarves had been put into, only to find it empty as the company had already gone to the dining hall. Fili and Cinna made their way there quickly enough, finding most of the dwarves already seated by a long low table that stood in the middle of the room. While Fili looked around for some free space, Cinna saw Gandalf sitting by another table with Lord Elrond, Thorin and Balin. The wizard shortly caught her gaze from a distance, sending her a kind smile and a small nod before her attention moved back to Fili who now motioned for the fae to follow him. They found two seats left next to each other where Dwalin, Oìn, Bofur and Kili were sitting together, taking their place next to Dwalin who merely shot them a short look before taking another sip from his cup of wine.

"What's this?" Fili asked once he'd sat down and made himself comfortable, his voice laced with disgust as he looked at the plate that sat before him, filled with salad, berries and vegetables of all sorts.

"Dinner," Kili answered from the opposite side of the table, half-heartedly poking around the green leaves with his fork. Fili shot his brother an almost shocked look. From further down the table, Dori could be heard talking to his little brother, trying to coax him into trying just a mouthful of the food. However, Ori vehemently stated that he did not like green food and that he'd rather have some chips instead. There were others complaining as well, Dwalin asking for the meat while Oìn just looked at a piece of vegetable on his fork in disgust.

Meanwhile, Cinna was happily munching away at her share of the food, popping a few berries in her mouth before she looked up at the dwarves around her. Bofur, who sat opposite her, shot her a sceptic look. "It's good," she said to him while chewing, already reaching for another handful and holding them out to the hatted dwarf. "There's nothing better than a mouthful of juicy, sweet berries."

Bofur, although taking the berries from the fae with a smile and putting them in his mouth one by one, slightly shook his head at her. "Well, clearly you have never tasted a good pot roast, lass."

"Or sausages," Dwalin chimed in gruffly from where he was sitting next to her while Fili just sighed longingly at the burly dwarf's words while listlessly chewing on a piece of bread. Cinna rolled her eyes, although a small smile pulled on the corners of her lips as she did so.

"How are you ever going to make any interesting experiences if you never try anything new?" she asked and while Dwalin just huffed quietly in reply, stuffing a leaf of lettuce in his mouth rather forcefully, Bofur glanced over at Kili who had not taken part in any of their conversation and was instead staring wistfully at something that was behind Cinna's back.

"I think our Kili is absolutely open to trying something new," Bofur muttered, although loud enough for anyone to hear and the fae's gaze flicked toward the brunet dwarf – as did everyone else's at the table – to see him shoot a small wink at the elf maid that was playing the harp behind them, Cinna now realized as she shortly turned to look over her shoulder. Kili only now noticed that everyone was staring at him and he quickly looked away from the elf to meet Dwalin's stern glare. Cinna watched curiously as the young dwarf's eyes widened slightly before he cleared his throat, glancing at Bofur who was sitting beside him and looking at him with a knowing grin.

"Can't say I fancy elf maids myself," he then said, shaking his head and returning Dwalin's gaze across the table. The larger dwarf's expression was unmoving as he listened to the young prince ramble on. "Too thin. They're all high cheekbones and… creamy skin. Not enough facial hair for me."

Unconsciously, Cinna's hand shortly reached up to her chin, her face set in a frown as she thought about women with facial hair. She'd never seen any, though she was now curious of course. What did they look like? How much facial hair did they have? Did they maybe decorate their beards as she did with her hair? The fae was so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice Fili shooting her a small sideways glance while his little brother kept talking, nodding his head at an elf that was passing the table behind him, playing the harp.

"Although," he muttered secretively, "that one there is not bad."

Bofur just looked back at the mentioned elf as Fili looked up to see whom his brother was talking about, both of them turning back to Kili with large grins on their faces. Meanwhile Dwalin slightly leaned forward, looking at the young dwarf intently as he answered.

"That's not an elf maid," he said and Kili quickly turned to look back at the elf with the harp that was now turned slightly towards them, his face falling as he realized the more masculine features on the harp-player's face. As he looked back, Dwalin shot him a sly wink while the others around the table erupted in boisterous laughter at Kili's embarrassment. Cinna merely watched while Fili next to her was almost crying with laughter, as Kili inclined his head, his face turning red as he nodded slightly and murmured, "That's funny. Aye, really funny."

The brunet shortly looked up then and met the fae's gaze over the table while the others around him kept laughing and clapping themselves on the shoulders at his expense. However, contrary to his expectations, Cinna wasn't laughing at him but only sent him a kind, almost comforting smile across the table. Kili stared at her for a moment before he slightly inclined his head and faintly smiled as well, grateful that at least one person wasn't making fun of him for his little mistake.


	6. Secrets

**Hello again! Sorry for the delay in updating, I'm very busy with work at the moment, so I can't guarantee any regular updates for now I'm afraid. But I hope you'll keep up with this story anyway :)**

**_overlordred_: Hello! I'm so happy to hear how much you liked Of Paws and Hands! I am considering a sequel to that actually, because I miss writing Tarya a bit :D I'd just have to find out if people are interested in that. Anyway, but for now, we have Cinna and Kili who need my attention. I'm glad you're holding out for these two! And yes, Fili really is a bit of a pseudo big brother to her, isn't he? They're just adorable friends, I love them. And I'm glad you like them, too! And about that being close to Fili in any capacity thing... yeah, I understand that very well, friend :D I hope you'll like this chapter and how the story evolves! :)**

**Thanks to _Eruwaedhiel95_, _ZambleTheZombie_, _KelseyBl_, _TerraMacMillan_, _bloodyrose1294_ and _Jenny-Wren28_ for your lovely reviews! I always love reading from you guys, you have no idea how much your feedback means to keep me motivated!**

**Thanks also to the followers and favouriters, of course. Always highly appreciated!**

**Now, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter and leave me some of your thoughts if you want! :)**

* * *

><p>"It was kind of you to invite us for dinner," Gandalf said, shooting a short glance over the gathered company who was laughing boisterously – seemingly at the expense of poor Kili – from where he was sitting at the table with Elrond and Thorin. "I'm not quite dressed for the occasion."<p>

"You never are," Elrond simply replied with a small chuckle, taking a sip of his wine and Gandalf merely tilted his head in silent agreement as he took a bite of his bread. Then he picked up the folded white napkin that lay next to his plate and cleaned his mouth before he addressed the Elf lord again, nodding his head slightly in Thorin's direction across the table.

"We have some swords with us," the wizard said. "Of elven make, I assume. I was wondering if you might be able to give us some more information about them."

As Elrond simply nodded, Thorin – upon Gandalf's sign – unbuckled his new sword from his belt and held it out to the elf with a stony expression as he took and inspected it closely, slowly drawing it halfway out of its sheath before he spoke. "This is Orcrist! The Goblin-Cleaver. A famous blade, forged by the High Elves of the West. My kin," Elrond spoke, a small appreciative smile coming to play on his lips as he re-sheathed the blade and handed it back to Thorin. "May it serve you well."

The dwarf just inclined his head in return and while Gandalf handed his own sword to Elrond, he let his gaze wander over the members of his company who were talking animatedly between each other. For a moment, Thorin wished he could have sat with his kin instead of at a separate table with Gandalf and the elf. The dark-haired dwarf only shortly let his gaze linger on Master Baggins' back as he talked quietly to Balin about something that Thorin couldn't hear from this distance. When he refocused his attention back on the conversation that was happening at his own table, Gandalf was already taking back his sword from Elrond with a grateful nod.

"How did you come by these?" the Elf-lord was asking and Thorin quickly glanced at Gandalf, narrowing his eyes as he waited for how the wizard was going to explain himself.

"We found them in a troll hoard on the Great East Road," Gandalf replied, nodding his head in a way that suggested that this was something rather peculiar. "Shortly before we were ambushed by orcs. Well, that part of the story you know."

"I cannot help but be curious about the rest of that particular story," Elrond answered with one eyebrow raised slightly, giving the wizard a pointed look as Gandalf fidgeted slightly. Thorin followed the exchange warily. "What were you doing on the Great East Road?"

As Gandalf said nothing for a moment, Elrond continued, raising his cup of wine to his lips as he spoke, looking around the company gathered in his dining hall. "Thirteen dwarves, a Halfling and a wood fae," he mused quietly. "Strange travelling companions, Gandalf."

"The fae is only a temporary acquaintance," Thorin rumbled from where he was sitting and the two other men looked at him while his gaze was set on the back of the slender figure that was sitting next to his oldest nephew. As he returned his gaze from the fae to his two opposites, he shortly met Gandalf's contemplative gaze. Thorin just narrowed his eyes at the wizard. He could only imagine what thoughts were running through Gandalf's head, what fate he could possibly have in mind for the fae, but for Thorin the decision had been made already. The company had discussed her earlier that day, when she had left them to spend some time in the gardens, for all Thorin knew, and had come to the conclusion that she was to be left behind in Rivendell. She was not in any danger anymore here and could easily find her way back to the forest she had come from or find a new place to go. It didn't actually matter to Thorin what she did, as long as he'd get rid of her soon enough. And since this decision had been made, he had agreed with the thoughts of some of his men that befriending her – or at least interacting with her – as long as they were still in Rivendell wouldn't do any harm. And although Fili seemed to be taking more advantage of this agreement than the rest, Thorin couldn't deny that the meeting of a fae was something unusual and he did not want to take away from his companions the short tale they would be able to tell about her at the end of their journey.

"Her name is Cinna and she is quite an unusual little creature, I can tell you," Gandalf spoke then, interrupting Thorin's thoughts. "And these are the descendants of the house of Durin!" he then went on to exclaim, pointing at the dwarves while holding a piece of bread. Thorin only raised his eyebrows ever so slightly as he listened to the wizard talk. "They're noble, decent folk. And surprisingly cultured, they've got a deep love of the arts."

At the same time that Gandalf praised the dwarves for their cultured manner, Bofur peeled himself out of the group and quickly climbed onto a small pedestal that stood in the middle of the room, his action so sudden and unexpected that it halted the musicians in their tracks and interrupted even Gandalf in his words, drawing the attention of the whole hall as the dwarf with the furry hat suddenly began to sing loudly.

"Theeeeere's aaaaan… inn, there's an inn,  
>there's a merry old inn, beneath an old grey hill!"<p>

Thorin grinned into his cup of wine as Bofur went on, stomping on the small pedestal as the dwarves around him began to clap and bang their fists on the table to support him with a rhythm as they began to sing in tune with him.

"And there they brew a beer so brown,  
>that the Man in the Moon himself came down<br>one night to drink his fill!"

Cinna was laughing and clapping along to Bofur's merry tune and she watched with delight as the dwarves around her all sang along, though her eyes widened suddenly as a breadroll flew past her head, almost hitting Dwalin in the face. But the burly dwarf just laughed loudly as Bofur's song went on and picked up some food as well to throw it across the table. Before the fae knew what was happening, food was being thrown around the whole room as the dwarves roared with song and laughter and as she looked across the table, she shortly met Kili's gaze as he picked up a small kind of creamy tart. Her eyes narrowed abruptly upon seeing the mischievous gleam in his brown eyes and as he extended his arm, she quickly ducked the moment he hurled it across the table, the tart hitting the wall instead of her face.

When Cinna straightened again, Bofur's song had ended and Kili – as well as the rest of the dwarves – were laughing merrily. The brunet's laughter only increased when he met her miffed gaze across the table and Cinna just huffed in return, shortly turning her head to see that the tart had landed on the wall right next to poor Lindir's face. The fae was quite grateful that Kili hadn't actually hit the brunet elf in the face, for she quite liked him. Looking around and hearing the dwarves' raucous bawling, she had to admit to herself that they seemed to have quite an unusual sense of humour and even though throwing food around wasn't what she would call a great source of entertainment, she found herself smiling along with them nonetheless.

It wasn't long after that most of the dwarves retired to their assigned room while only Thorin, Balin, Bilbo and Gandalf remained with Lord Elrond to discuss the map that would show them the way to enter the Lonely Mountain once they reached it.

Cinna didn't know of any of this and though she saw the small group head off to somewhere else, she didn't ask any questions as she followed behind Fili to where the others were going. At least at first, she didn't. Once she was seated on the floor by a fire that the dwarves had started by burning some chairs however, she couldn't keep her curiosity down any longer.

"This quest that you are on," she started innocently, yet loud enough for the dwarves who were sitting nearest her to turn their attention towards the fae. "It's quite dangerous, isn't it? What with orcs and the likes chasing you around."

There was a short silence over the group as the dwarves exchanged a few hesitant looks before it was finally Bofur who spoke up. "Well, to be fair, we hadn't really anticipated that."

"Aye, but we got out of it all right!" Gloìn chimed in, his voice rumbling through the room as he stuck a sausage to the end of a thin chair leg and held it over the fire to roast. Cinna watched with slightly raised eyebrows as the burly dwarf looked over at her, giving her a short nod. "That little scratch on your arm there was probably the worst of the matter."

The fae glanced down at her arm then, frowning slightly as she had almost forgotten about her little injury that had resulted from the tumble down into the cave. She flinched slightly when Fili, who was sitting beside her, reached out and gently grabbed hold of her upper arm, inspecting the scratch closely before looking up at her.

"I didn't see that, why didn't you tell me you got hurt?" he asked, ignoring the odd looks he received from some of his companions upon the companionable tone he was using with the fae. Cinna just shrugged, thus freeing her arm from the blond dwarf's grip.

"I'd quite forgotten about it," she answered with a small smile. "It's fine, it doesn't even really hurt."

"What a brave little fae we've gotten ourselves there," Bofur chuckled, sending the red-haired woman a friendly wink as she shot him a small glare. Cinna just tilted her head, lightly running her hand over the scratch on her arm.

"Bravery is not really a quality that faes possess, I'm afraid," she uttered and by now she had the attention of the whole group who was listening to her attentively.

"What makes you say that?" Kili inquired from where he was sitting on the opposite side of the fire, looking at her intently as she met his gaze over the small flames. It was the first time that he actually spoke to her since they'd been in the cave and Cinna was slightly surprised by the odd, almost gentle tone of his voice.

The fae shrugged slightly again, not sure what to say. "Fairy folk… we… we don't really have opportunities to be brave. We spend our days among trees and leaves, rivers and lakes. Nothing unexpected ever happens in nature, you see, it all follows a distinct pattern. Even the biggest storms you can foresee if you know what to look for."

"That sounds rather peaceful," Ori spoke quietly from where he was sitting next to his two brothers and Cinna turned her head to look at him. She sent the dwarf a small smile, nodding.

"Oh, it is," she said kindly. "Though I have to say that compared to your adventures – even if I have only witnessed a small part of it, I assume – it seems rather unexciting."

"Unexciting is not a bad thing," the dwarf who sat next to Ori answered her then, one with grey hair that Cinna seemed to recall was called Dori. "In fact, I could do with a little less excitement on our journey from now on."

"But then you'd have no good stories to tell when you get back, would you?" Fili chimed in from beside the fae, grinning at the older dwarf who just huffed slightly in reply.

"Oi, Fili! You and your brother had enough stories to tell even when you were still living with your mother in Ered Luin!" Bofur laughed upon his words and the two brothers just exchanged a wicked smile, nodding their heads slightly in silent agreement.

"You hail from the Blue Mountains, then?" Cinna asked curiously, looking at the dwarves around her and meeting Bofur's gaze as he nodded at her. "I have friends who live in the forests there, they hail from the Gulf of Lhûn."

"Aye, lass," he said cheerfully, taking a sip of his tankard of beer, which had been refilled several times already. However, the alcohol only seemed to make Bofur more chipper and energetic than he already was. "Although some of us have their roots in Erebor, you see, and that's quite on the opposite side of –"

"BOFUR!"

The hatted dwarf jumped – while Cinna flinched in surprise – as the voices of his companions suddenly joined together for a loud scolding and he put his tankard down on the floor before him, looking at the others indignantly.

"_What_?" he asked, meeting the dark glares of his friends with a frown of his own before his eyebrows suddenly rose and his eyes widened as he finally realised what he'd said. "Oh. My bad."

"What is it?" Cinna asked in confusion when Bofur shot the others a sheepish look, quickly burying his nose in his tankard again. Fili uncomfortably cleared his throat beside her while the others just sent her either apologetic or meaningless looks. Cinna frowned slightly, replaying the last few minutes in her head. What was it that Bofur said that could have been so bad? Maybe it had something to do with this quest that she wasn't supposed to know anything about. They were awfully secretive about that. He'd said they had their roots in Erebor, the fae thought, was that it? Cinna knew that Erebor was a mountain in the North of Middle-Earth, though she was rather convinced that no one lived there anymore since the attack of a dragon that lay over a hundred years back. She hadn't been alive then, but had heard of the incident through other faes she'd encountered that had lived in the woods around the mountain before the dragon's attack. For all Cinna knew, there was only a dry wasteland left of it now.

_Smaug_, Cinna remembered. That had been the name of the dragon.

"What did you just say?"

The fae jumped as a deep voice suddenly jerked her out of her train of thoughts and she quickly looked up to see Kili staring at her across the fire, eyebrows drawn together into a deep frown. Cinna shook her head.

"Nothing."

"You said Smaug," he insisted, looking at her darkly as though he was suddenly very suspicious of her. The fae sighed deeply, inclining her head. She must have thought out loud without noticing it, she scolded herself silently.

"I heard it, too," Fili said then, looking at her from the side. His gaze was wary, though not as dark as his brother's Cinna realized when she glanced up at him from beneath her eyelashes. She slightly tilted her head, feeling awfully pressured to explain herself beneath the dwarves' heavy gazes.

"I do that sometimes," she muttered, joining her hands in her lap to intertwine her fingers. "Thinking out loud. I don't even notice when it happens."

"Well, what were you thinking then?" Dwalin asked gruffly from where he was sitting, sending the fae a stern glare. Cinna avoided his gaze, slightly drawing her mouth askew in discontent as she answered.

"I was just trying to figure out why you were so angry with Bofur when he mentioned Erebor," she then said slowly. "I can't help it. It's a secret and I can't help but wanting to solve secrets. Faes are like that, I suppose. So, I put the pieces together that I had. You didn't like him mentioning Erebor to me, which must mean that your quest has something to do with it. I thought maybe you wanted to go there, to Erebor, but that would be a strange idea, since there's a dragon in there. Or at least, so I've heard. Smaug, I think his name was."

For a moment, the dwarves merely sat there silently, staring at her out of wide eyes. Cinna glanced at Fili questioningly, seeing him scratch his beard in silence, looking awfully uncomfortable. The fae looked around the group, eyebrows rising as no one said anything to deny her theory.

"So, _that_ is your plan indeed? To enter the mountain?" she asked, her voice betraying the excitement she felt at the thought of such a heroic adventure that seemed at the same time so completely mad. A small smile came to play on her lips as none of the dwarves answered her, though she didn't need them to. She was convinced that this was what they were planning to do. "Now that's what I call brave," she said quietly, before raising one eyebrow slightly. "… and slightly bonkers."

"You cannot tell anyone," Fili then suddenly spoke, looking at her intently. "It is our plan, yes. But you are not supposed to know, so it would be best if you simply forgot all of it at once."

And before Cinna knew what was happening, they were all talking to her - or at her - at once, their voices mixing together into a mess of noise.

"Best never speak of it again," Dori uttered.

"You _must_ keep it secret!" Gloìn demanded.

"Oh, whom could she possibly tell?" Dwalin huffed.

"We mustn't let Thorin know of this," Nori provided, which caused the rest to nod vigorously in agreement of his words.

"Oi! We really should never have told you!" Bofur exclaimed, covering his face with his hand as he shook his head, the tankard of ale standing forgotten by his side.

"But you haven't told me," Cinna said, eyes wide at the sudden frenzy that had erupted.

"Told you what?" Another voice suddenly spoke from behind them and the dwarves stopped talking at once, stiffening abruptly at the familiar deep baritone. Cinna slowly turned her head to look over her shoulder to the door where Thorin was standing with Balin and Bilbo, staring darkly at the small circle they had formed. His icy blue gaze lingered on his men for a moment before his eyes found her and settled heavily on the fae's small form, making her shrink slightly beneath his glare.

"Told you _what_?" Thorin repeated in an angry growl.


	7. The trouble of knowing

**Wheew! Another one!**

**_TerraMacMillan_: No, Thorin's not happy at all and I'm afraid poor Cinna will get to experience it from the front row. But I hope you'll like the chapter anyway! :)**

**_EquusGold_: First of all, I'm glad you liked the last chapter! You'll see how the scene unfolds in this one, though Thorin will be unhappy with all of them for a while now, I can tell you. Those tattletales :D Secondly, I did some research on the fae/faes thing and found out that it is actually possible to use both as a plural of fae. But, anyway, your suggestion is probably the more 'common' one, so I'll try to stick by that from now on! Thanks for telling me!**

**_SilverZelenia_: Oh yeah, Thorin's fuming :D And you're quite right, it is what will essentially allow her to go on the journey, though there will be much more in store for her that binds her to the quest than just that :)**

**_Eruwaedhiel95_: I'm glad you thought it was typical Bofur, because I did, too :D And yay, so I have at least one enthusiast for a OPaH-sequel already, thanks so much! I think I'd have to add like an author's note to the end of the story and ask if others would be interested in that as well, and then make my mind up what the sequel should be about anyway. But I think it'll happen at some point :D Anyway, I'm glad you're looking forward to Kili and Cinna, I have lots of things planned for them! :D**

**Thanks to all you guys and also to _bloodyrose1294_ for your review, Thorin is indeed quite pissed :D**

**Now, go and read and I hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

><p>Cinna reacted completely out of instinct as she saw Thorin quickly march up to her, his steps heavy with anger, and she jumped up and brought some distance between herself and the dark-haired dwarf as swiftly as she could, her movements deft and speedy as she manoeuvred herself through the small group of dwarves towards the other end of the room. She really didn't want Thorin to get to her, knowing somehow that nothing good would come of that, considering how furious he seemed.<p>

"Uncle!" Fili called out as Thorin stepped past him, not paying him any attention as he kept his eyes trained on the small figure of the fae that was just now shooting a glance behind her towards the balcony that led down to the gardens. Maybe, if she was fast enough, she could run down there and disappear in the leaves until Thorin had calmed down. Her thoughts were interrupted abruptly, however, when the dark-haired dwarf narrowed his eyes and growled dangerously at her.

"Don't you even _think_ about it, fae!" he rumbled and Cinna quickly turned her head back around to see him having almost closed the distance she'd put between them before. "What did they tell you?"

"Nothing!" The fae said genuinely. He was only a little distance away now as Cinna continuously moved backwards until her back suddenly hit a pillar, halting her in her tracks. Her eyes were wide as she looked at Thorin before she chanced another glance toward the stairs that were now not so far away anymore. _Now or never_, she thought, before she moved quickly and made to run for the gardens. However, before she got anywhere, a large and calloused hand clamped around her arm, roughly jerking her back into the room. Cinna clenched her eyes shut as she came to a stumbling halt right in front of Thorin who was glaring down at the small female in turn.

"Speak!" he bellowed, his grip tightening slightly and making her squirm in turn, wanting nothing more than to get away from the seething dwarf.

"Thorin, don't be too hard on her!" Bofur said from somewhere behind them, though the dwarf-king didn't pay his words any heed.

"We haven't told her anything, she just…" Ori trailed off, as he wasn't sure how to explain what had happened.

"Uncle," Fili tried to chime in again, walking slowly toward Thorin and the fae, though only Cinna shot him a small look as he came closer, her emerald eyes wide like those of a trapped deer. Fili shot her a sympathetic look. "I can explain."

"I'd rather she explain _herself_," Thorin answered angrily, dismissing his nephew with his words as he shook the fae slightly, causing her gaze to flick back to him. "What do you know?"

Fili watched as Cinna tilted her head, her expression turning thoughtful as she gave an answer. "Many things, really. Did you know for example that squirrels produce warning calls to alert their friends from lurking predators? The one who begins the calls is likely to be the one to leave last, hence putting his life in more danger for the others."

The blond dwarf shook his head at her feeble attempt to avoid telling the truth, knowing that Thorin would squeeze it out of her anyway, though he was slightly amazed at the useless facts she seemed to be able to throw at him at any given moment. However, his uncle was stubborn that way Fili knew from various similar situations he'd lived during his childhood, though they had mostly involved Kili and a gone-wrong prank as well.

"Do not take me for a fool, woman!" Thorin growled at the fae, making her shrink slightly beneath his angry glare as he towered over her. He lowered his voice to a deep furious rumble. "What do you know of our quest?"

"Only that you mean to go north," Cinna conceded finally and Fili frowned slightly as she paused, knowing that this was not the whole truth of what she knew and wondering whether she had actually been lying to him the moment she had said she couldn't. That was when he suddenly saw her scrunch her face into an unhappy grimace before her features smoothed again as the words tumbled out of her mouth, seemingly without her whole consent. "To enter Erebor, which his your homeland. And defeat the dragon. Which is called Smaug."

Cinna stumbled a step backwards as Thorin abruptly let go of her arm, leaving a red mark to show on her pale skin from how tight he had gripped her. The dwarves shrank back slightly as their king suddenly turned to them, levelling his men with a dark glare. "And which one of you couldn't hold his tongue?"

Bofur opened his mouth to say something, though his courage left him as soon as he met Thorin's intimidating dark gaze. The dwarf-king looked at him, his icy blue eyes demanding an answer and it was then that Kili suddenly stepped in front of Bofur, causing the hatted dwarf's mouth to snap shut as he spoke to his uncle calmly.

"It was nothing, uncle. One of us merely mentioned Erebor for a second, not even in any way related to the quest. We stopped it immediately but Cinna just figured it out from there," Kili said, voice calm as he looked from his uncle to the red-haired fae who was staring at him silently while rubbing the sore spot on her arm that Thorin had left. The brunet dwarf raised his eyebrows slightly as he looked back at his uncle. "She's rather smart for a fae, you've got to give her that."

Cinna's mouth dropped open as she shot the young dwarf an indignant glare. "_For a fae_?" she echoed, momentarily forgetting the rather precarious situation she was in. "I am sorry but how many fae have you met, Master Dwarf?"

"Well, only you, but –" Kili faltered slightly as he looked at her and met her miffed gaze. Her hand dropped from the red mark on her arm as she put them both on her hips in an offensive stance. Kili was slightly taken aback by her sudden change in demeanour after she'd seemed so intimidated by his uncle just moments before.

"Then you must be rather ignorant to assume that you are in any way superior to my kind in terms of intelligence," she hissed. "Tell me, Kili, how smart was it to fall into a river, almost drown and lose a pony after _someone_ had specifically warned you about it? How smart was it to get into the hands of three massive mountain trolls – or rather, was it your cleverness that saved you that day?" Kili didn't answer, just stared at her with his mouth hanging open as she huffed quietly in return. "No. No, I thought not."

"I was merely trying to –"

"Well, stop trying then!"

"Now, listen here –" Kili started again, pointing his index finger angrily at the equally as disgruntled fae but was cut off abruptly by his uncle.

"That's enough!" Thorin intervened finally, shooting both the fae and his nephew a withering look. "Both of you be quiet!"

His loud words were enough to shut them both up momentarily, though they kept exchanging glares as Thorin let out a deep sigh, bringing his gaze back to Cinna reluctantly. "It was agreed upon that you are to be left behind here to be free to go wherever you want," he said then and the fae quickly glanced away from Kili to meet the dark-haired dwarf's gaze. "I am still more than willing to see this arrangement through, however, now that you know more about our mission than you should, I shall speak to Gandalf to see what can be done about this matter."

Cinna frowned slightly, tilting her head to the side as she observed the tall dwarf. "That sounds as though you wanted to kill me and dump my body in a nearby pond."

One of Thorin's eyebrows twitched upwards slightly upon her words, though his expression remained stoic. "I can assure you that is not what I had in mind," he answered, his voice a deep rumble, though he didn't sound quite as furious anymore as he had a couple of minutes ago. Tired was more it. "In any case, there is nothing to be done about it now. We shall stay here for tonight, so there will be time to discuss the matter of your person with Gandalf tomorrow. For now, you should get some rest." He turned away from the fae, letting his gaze wander over his companions who had followed the scene without saying a word, silently glad that they weren't scolded too bad for letting something slip in front of Cinna.

"That applies to all of you," Thorin said, a small sigh escaping his lips as he moved away toward his pack. "It has been a long day. Restore your energy while you can."

While the dwarves complied with Thorin's orders, many muttering that they could indeed use a decent night's sleep, Cinna quietly slipped away from the group, not entirely comfortable with staying with them after the incident. Swiftly making her way down into the gardens, she looked down at the red mark on her arm that was slowly turning blue now, rubbing the sore spot lightly. She had never been manhandled as much as she had been in only a few hours with these dwarves, she thought to herself, suddenly feeling awfully fragile when compared to the bulky, muscular figures of the dwarves. She made her way through the grass that was now colder against her bare feet than it had been in the afternoon, for now it was illuminated with the light of the moon rather than the sun.

"Hey!" someone suddenly called quietly from behind her, voice muffled in a little breathless huff. "Wait!"

Cinna turned around, halting in her tracks, as she saw none other than Kili approach. The fae raised her eyebrows at the young dwarf sceptically as he caught up to her and came to a halt in front of her, bringing his arms to his hips as he took a few deep breaths. "You know, for someone with legs so short you are really fast."

The fae just raised her eyebrows a bit higher before she turned away from him and made to move forward again, but was halted once more as Kili reached out and put a hand on her shoulder to hold her back. "Alright, alright," he said. "Wait. I – I wanted to apologise."

Slowly, she turned back around to face him, her expression betraying her confusion at his words. She had thought him to be exceptionally rude up until now, so it seemed rather peculiar to her that he would chase after her simply to apologize.

"What for?"

Kili sighed quietly, retrieving his hand from her shoulder when he was sure that she wouldn't go anywhere. "Well, for what I said, obviously."

"You say many things."

"Right, then. I'm sorry about the stupid thing I said."

"You say many stupid things," Cinna retorted with a tilt of her head, watching as Kili's jaw twitched as he pressed his teeth together, slightly narrowing his eyes at her.

"You're very annoying, do you know that?" he asked and the fae just shrugged lightly, obviously not very bothered by this statement. Kili silently held her gaze for another moment before he sighed again, deeper this time, and spoke once more. "I am sorry for saying that you were smart for a fae. You are smart, end of sentence."

Cinna stared at Kili silently for a moment, studying his features and slightly drawing her brows together as she saw the impatient look in his hazel brown eyes. Now it was her turn to narrow her eyes at him. He was obviously eager to get this over and done with. She wasn't sure why, though didn't want to dig either, for she wasn't overly keen on having him as company any longer than necessary anyway. "I accept your apology," she said finally, giving the dwarf a short nod.

"Well, good," Kili answered, nodding to himself as he took a step back. "That's that settled then."

And without another word he turned around and stalked back the way he had come, leaving Cinna to stare after him in confusion for a moment before she turned away as well and made her way to the small pond she'd sat by a few hours earlier. She took her time there, simply enjoying the relaxing surroundings of Rivendell's gardens. The fae lay in the grass, her auburn hair splayed out on the green ground around her head as she lay on her back, gazing up at the stars and the moon above. It was a clear night and Cinna found it to be a few hours later when she finally got up from her spot and walked back to the dwarves. She wasn't quite sure why she had decided to spend the night in their room in the end as she walked into the hall where a small fire was still lit, burning out slowly.

Most of the dwarves were fast asleep when she made her way along their splayed out bodies, hearing several loud snores from different dwarves hitting various keys. A small, amused smile came to play on her lips as she sought out a familiar thick blond mane of hair, seeing Fili lie only a few metres away, close to the fire. The fae made her way over to him, sitting down next to the sleeping dwarf as she spread out her legs so that the small fire could warm her feet.

"I have a spare blanket in my pack if you'd like one."

The sudden voice made Cinna jump slightly and she quickly turned her head to see Fili lying on his side with his eyes open, looking up at her sleepily. The fae shot him a small smile, shaking her head. "I'm quite alright, though I appreciate the offer. I'm used to much less than even a burning fire at night."

Fili frowned slightly as he contemplated that. "Right," he muttered thoughtfully, keeping his voice low as to not wake any of the others with their hushed conversation. "I don't suppose you spend much time indoors, do you?"

"Indeed not," she chuckled quietly, making Fili smile in turn. "But I assumed there is no harm in trying. I'll have my whole life to sleep in trees, after all." She looked down at the blond dwarf who returned her gaze silently, eyebrows rising slightly in a silent question that prompted her to continue. "And besides," Cinna said, looking at Fili with a small smile. "Most of you make for some very pleasant company."

The young dwarf laughed softly, shaking his head slightly as he let a yawn escape his lips. He pillowed his head on his arm, giving the fae a knowing look. "Oh, come on now. Don't be too hard on him. He apologized, didn't he?"

Cinna's eyebrows rose at his words and her gaze shortly flicked from Fili to his little brother who was lying only a few metres away, his back turned to them. He seemed to be fast asleep, his body moving only ever so slightly with his deep and even breathing. "You told him to," the fae concluded, not even bothering to formulate her words as a question, as she looked back at Fili, raising one eyebrow at him pointedly. The blond dwarf just grinned faintly and shrugged slightly.

"He needs a little nudge in the right direction sometimes," he admitted quietly, shifting himself into a more comfortable position on his bedroll. "That doesn't mean he wasn't being sincere."

"I suppose so," Cinna murmured in return as Fili gave a small nod and closed his eyes, growing too tired to keep their conversation up any longer. The redhead watched him for a moment as his breathing evened out and his expression turned incredibly peaceful in his sleep before she glanced back at the form of Kili who was now lying on his back, one arm draped over his face and his mouth hanging open slightly. Cinna found herself smiling lightly despite herself, finding the brunet dwarf to look rather sweet when fast asleep. He was definitely less annoying when he was unconscious, she thought with a shake of her head before she lay down on her back and tried to get some sleep, as well.

* * *

><p>When Kili woke up the next day it was because of the sun that was casting rays of light to dance across his face. With a small groan, the brunet dwarf sat up, rubbing his face and blinking away the remaining sleep from his eyes only to find that most of his companions had already left to go have breakfast in the dining hall. Only a few were still in their sleeping quarters, notably Ori and Bilbo as well as Fili and Cinna. The fae was lying curled up next to his already awake brother as Kili registered with a small frown that Fili noticed as soon as their eyes met.<p>

"She seems to have taken a shine to you," Kili muttered, raising his eyebrows at Fili who just shrugged in return while tying his boots. The brunet quickly followed his example, tearing his gaze away from the small red-haired female that was still fast asleep. She seemed to look even more innocent than usual while sleeping, Kili thought to himself as he put on his boots.

"Well, that's a least one of us she likes," Fili quipped.

Kili knew of course that the fae and he had started off on the wrong foot and didn't seem to be able to actually get along since their first meeting. Somehow, they always seemed to get on each other's nerves. Kili knew he found the redhead rather infuriating at times, though he had only known her for such a short while, with her naïve manner and her sassy attitude. Every time he spoke to her, she just had to have the last word, just had to provoke him with her blunt honesty or her riddled answers. But still, he found himself slightly offended by Fili's words now. He was a rather likeable person after all, wasn't he? He thought so himself, at least. He usually had no problem getting along with people right from the start, so then why was it so difficult with the fae?

"It doesn't matter whether she likes me or not," Kili said then, and though he didn't hear the slightly miffed tone of his own voice himself, Fili raised his eyebrows at him as he noticed it. "She'll be gone by tonight anyway and we'll never have to cross paths again."

And with that he got up and followed Ori out of the room while Fili just shook his head at his little brother's back and turned to nudge the fae awake. They went to breakfast together with Bilbo and it was only after they had eaten that Fili's and Cinna's ways parted for the time being as he went with most of the other dwarves to fit in some weaponry training and getting cleaned up somewhere afterwards, while the fae joined Bilbo who had decided to explore Rivendell while he had the chance.

Only Gandalf, Thorin and Balin stayed behind seated at the table as they watched the rest disappear from the hall in several small groups. Thorin watched until both Bilbo and Cinna had vanished from his sight before he put down his knife with a small sigh, turning his gaze to Gandalf who had watched the fae go as well, smiling silently at the friendship that seemed to be building between Bilbo and her.

"She knows," the dark-haired dwarf uttered finally, a deep frown edged onto his face as Gandalf looked at him questioningly. Thorin shot the wizard a pointed look. "The fae. She knows about our mission."

"Oh," Gandalf hummed in turn, his forehead creasing slightly in a thoughtful expression. "Well, that does not surprise me much. Fae love solving secrets you must know. Cinna wouldn't be an exception."

"And you did not think of parting with this information sooner?" Thorin growled quietly. "Before my men could go and spill clues for her?"

Balin cleared his throat slightly, glancing from Gandalf to Thorin. His voice was calm as he spoke. "Well, now, let's not forget that they did not do it on purpose, Thorin."

"The intentions they had do not matter now, it is too late. She knows and we must ensure that she keeps her knowledge secret before we part ways, or else she will pose a risk to the succeeding of this quest," Thorin answered, his eyes dark with frustration. "This is why I wanted to speak with you, Gandalf, before we send her away."

"And what might I do to help you with that?" the wizard asked, his frown lightening slightly as his voice took on an almost curious tone. Thorin just shrugged unwillingly, waving his hand slightly in emphasis.

"I'm sure you can persuade her to keep quiet about it, or if everything fails and she will not see reason, you might be able to perform some sort of spell on her," he said and Gandalf just raised his eyebrows in return, shaking his head slightly. "You're the wizard of this company, after all."

"Fae are not susceptible to magic, I'm afraid, as they are little more than natural spirits," he replied. "They are too pure to be corrupted by it, you see, fae have their own kind of magic. And though I am sure that Cinna would be trustworthy to keep your secret, it is not in her power to lie when confronted about it."

Balin frowned at this. "What do you mean by that?"

The grey wizard smiled lightly at the old dwarf as he answered patiently. "What I mean is that though Cinna can confuse one with her words, she cannot lie. Therefore, if questioned thoroughly about your quest, she will not be able to help but tell the truth of what she knows."

For a moment after Gandalf's words distinct silence hung over the table while Balin glanced from the wizard to Thorin. The dark-haired dwarf was staring down at the wood of the table, his face set in a deep frown as he shook his head. "Well, that is just maddeningly unhelpful, as usual," he muttered quietly, almost as if to himself, though both Balin and Gandalf heard. The wizard looked a bit offended, though didn't let it show in his words when he spoke next.

"I am sorry that I am unable to give you any better news," the wizard tried to console the dwarf-king, though his efforts were only half-hearted. Thorin just sent him a pointed look in return while Balin spoke up thoughtfully.

"So, this is the reason why she has confessed her knowledge of the quest yesterday," he mused, exchanging a look with Thorin who looked deeply troubled about this news. "If you remember, Thorin, she was very unwilling to share any information with you at first but you kept questioning her until she had no choice but to yield."

Thorin just nodded slowly, letting out a deep sigh as he looked back up at Gandalf. "So, what do you propose then? That we take her with us? That's ridiculous."

"I do not see how else you will be able to keep your quest completely safe and secret," Gandalf said. "Lord Elrond knows that you mean to enter the mountain, which is why I was called to a meeting this evening. And this means that he is not the only one to know. It will not only concern you but I am certain that this quest will be discussed thoroughly tonight. It would be best for you to leave Rivendell while the council his held and to take Cinna with you so that no one has a possibility to question her."

"But what harm could it do, really, to let her go free?" Balin chimed in, frowning slightly. "After all, she is a wood fae who doesn't meet that many people she could tell, I'd assume."

"She's met you, hasn't she? Several times, as well," Gandalf retorted with one eyebrow raised slightly in emphasis. Balin hesitated for a moment before he closed his mouth and gave a curt nod, understanding the wizard's words. Cinna wasn't shy, really, and she would probably not hesitate to talk to strangers if they seemed interesting enough in the future.

Thorin let out a huff, shaking his head. "What are we to do with a fae in the company? She would be completely useless, a burden. She has no combat experience whatsoever, no skill to be of any aid."

"You should not dismiss her so easily, Thorin," Gandalf answered patiently, though with an earnest voice. "It's true she has no skill in combat but that does not mean that she has no skills at all. Fae have extraordinary resistances to all elements, despite their small bodies. They are fast and easily know their way around in nature like practically no one else, Cinna might make a good scout. And additionally, fae are very light-hearted and jaunty. She will lift the spirits of your companions on tiring days, which we both know they can use."

"Fine, fine," Thorin grumbled. "Don't waste your words. If you think this to be the best way, then so it may be. But I will not take responsibility for her. If she is to come on this quest, she will have to pull her weight."

Gandalf just nodded, his face now showing a content expression. "Good. Very good," he said with a small smile hidden beneath his bushy grey beard. "Then you shall depart as soon as I am at council. Head for the Misty Mountains, as we discussed, and wait for me there. I will meet you as soon as I can."

Thorin just nodded in return, tired of talking as he got up and nodded towards Balin. "I will tell the others that we're to depart tonight. Go and try to find the Halfling and the fae, make sure they are not late."

Balin inclined his head as Thorin turned and marched out of the room without another word, obviously very unhappy with how this discussion had turned out. It was best in situations like these to leave the dwarf-king alone for a while so he had time to cool down, Balin knew. They didn't need Thorin to be grumpier than usual when they departed later that day, though in this case it seemed almost unavoidable. It would definitely take him some time to warm up to the red-haired fae.

"She will do fine by you," Gandalf uttered once Thorin had disappeared, interrupting Balin's thoughts and the white-haired dwarf turned his head to shoot the wizard a questioning look. He simply returned it with a small, knowing smile. "Cinna is more resourceful than Thorin knows yet. She will prove herself in time, though I would ask you to keep an eye on her if you would. This is an unknown world that we make her step into, she will need help sometimes. Someone she can trust. A friend."

Balin just smiled faintly and nodded. He didn't wish anything bad to happen to the fae, and so he was not reluctant to offer her his help if ever she needed it. "Of course, Gandalf. I'll do what I can, albeit I do feel as though she has already found some friends among us."

Knowing that Balin was talking about the young blond prince, Fili, who indeed seemed to have become fast friends with the fae, Gandalf nodded as well, feeling slightly relieved that there were some people at least that Cinna would be able to rely on during her journey, however long it would be. The only question now was how the fae would take the news that she was to go with the dwarves, the wizard thought to himself with a small frown.


	8. Butting heads

**And off we go again! This one was quite fast, wasn't it? :D**

**_Evangeline Pond:_ Well, then I hope this chapter won't disappoint! I'm glad you like Cinna and Kili not liking each other at first, they have a way to go still until that changes :D**

**_SilverZelenia_: I'm glad you like sassy Cinna and the squirrel diversion, she's got some stuff up her sleeve after all :D And no, she won't be too happy about the idea of accompanying them, you're quite right there! You'll see how it turns out in this chapter :D**

**Thanks to _TerraMacMillan_, _Eruwaedhiel95_ and _Little Bucky_ for your lovely reviews! I loved reading them as always!**

**Thanks also to followers and favouriters!**

**Now, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter, it's the last one in Rivendell before we finally get on the road again! :D**

* * *

><p>"I never imagined I would come to Rivendell in my life," Bilbo said, his voice full of wonder as he let his gaze wander over the city from the balcony he was standing on together with Cinna. They had spent most of the afternoon exploring Imladris, its gardens, halls and libraries, and had finally come to a stop here, simply taking in the beautiful view. "I've only ever read of it, you know, in my books at home. I've read of many things, many adventures and yet I never dared to dream I would actually end up on one myself one day."<p>

Cinna slightly turned her head to shoot Bilbo a sideways glance, the late afternoon sun warming her face. She smiled at the hobbit's dreamy look as he gazed into the distance. "Are you happy then? Now that you're away on your own adventure?"

Bilbo stayed silent for a moment as he kept looking out over Rivendell and it was a moment, in which Cinna did not take her eyes off him, before he finally took in a deep breath and nodded. "Yes," he muttered, turning his head to return the fae's gaze. "Yes, I suppose I am. I've always been happy at Bag End, mind you, but being on this journey with these dwarves… it's quite something different. It makes me feel more alive somehow."

"I understand," Cinna answered quietly, giving the hobbit a small smile. "I have only spent one full day with this company and yet I have been more active than I have been in years, I think. It's very exciting, your adventure, but I don't think it is for me. I'm looking forward to going back to a calmer life, a more peaceful one."

The Halfling nodded in turn, giving the fae an understanding look. "I wish you good luck," he said with genuine kindness. "And even though the circumstances of our meeting were somewhat unlucky, it was a great pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Likewise, Bilbo," Cinna smiled brightly, shortly reaching out and giving the hobbit's arm a small squeeze. She had enjoyed this afternoon greatly in Bilbo's company, for the Halfling and her seemed to have a common love for the small and beautiful things of the world. Talking to him was very easy, as it was with Fili, though the topics were completely different. Bilbo just returned her smile, inclining his head at her before they both turned back to look out over Rivendell, enjoying the warm orange light of the late afternoon sun.

That was until someone quietly cleared their throat behind them and both fae and hobbit turned around in surprise to see Balin standing there, giving them a friendly smile beneath his bushy white beard.

"Finally, I've found you two! For a moment I thought I had missed you again," the old dwarf uttered jovially before his voice turned more serious and his face took on a more earnest expression. "Thorin wants to gather the company and depart as soon as Gandalf is in council tonight, so that the elves won't notice we're gone right away."

A small, wistful smile came to play on Cinna's lips as she looked from Balin to Bilbo. "Well, then," she muttered. "I suppose the time has come for us to bid each other farewell, Bilbo."

Balin cleared his throat once more before Bilbo could even open his mouth to reply, causing the fae to shoot him a confused look. The old dwarf suddenly seemed to be fidgeting slightly, obviously a bit uncomfortable. "I'm afraid it is not," he said, causing Cinna to frown slightly before her eyebrows rose in understanding.

"Oh, of course," she smiled. "I should come and say goodbye to all of you, not just Bilbo."

"Well," Balin started, coughing slightly. "Actually, no, lass. That's not what I meant. You are supposed to come with us."

All of a sudden, the smile on Cinna's face faltered completely and left an incomprehensive expression on her face. "I'm sorry?"

"As it turns out we cannot rely on you to keep our quest a secret," Balin uttered quietly, obviously wanting to explain himself to the fae calmly as her gaze darkened with every word he said. "Gandalf has explained to us that there is nothing to be done and so Thorin has decided that you are to accompany us as we go on."

"_Thorin has decided_?" Cinna seethed, narrowing her emerald eyes at the old dwarf. "And what gives Thorin the right to decide over my fate?"

Balin hesitated shortly, shooting a glance at Bilbo who merely stood beside the fae without saying anything, though he understood completely why she was so angry. Although, if she truly was a security risk, then he also understood why Thorin wanted to keep an eye on her, somehow. But he'd rather not utter that thought to the fae at the moment as she glared at Balin who finally spoke up again. "Well, he is the leader of this company and has a responsibility to keep this quest safe and secret. Therefore, his decision makes perfect sense," the whiter-haired dwarf said diplomatically.

However, Cinna was having none of it. With an angry huff, she stormed past the old dwarf who only exchanged a short glance with Bilbo before they both hurried after her, struggling to keep up with her fast pace. Even though the situation did not really call for it, Balin took a moment to realize that Gandalf had been right; the fae was indeed unexpectedly fast.

"Cinna, where are you going?" Bilbo called after the redhead as she marched down the corridors they had come from earlier and though the hobbit had quite lost his sense of orientation by now, he was rather sure that the fae knew exactly where she was going.

"I will not stand by while some grumpy old dwarf decides that I have nothing to say when it comes to my own life," Cinna hissed in return and although the fae was several steps ahead of them both Balin and Bilbo understood her perfectly. They rushed to keep up with her as she made her way back to where the dwarves had stayed during the night, not even hesitating for a second before she pushed open the doors with some effort, coming face to face with the company that was packing their things. Cinna's sudden entrance had caused the attention to shift to her and the fae shortly let her gaze wander over the dwarves before her eyes found the one she was looking for.

"You!" she called angrily, narrowing her eyes as she marched over to where Thorin was standing with Dwalin, both of them sending her odd looks, though the dark-haired dwarf's face quickly grew stern when she addressed him loudly. "Who do you think you are? Making decisions for me without even consulting me first?"

"It was something between Gandalf and I," Thorin returned, voice calm but annoyed as he returned the fae's gaze. She shook her head at him, putting both hands on her hips as she spoke.

"No, it was not! It _is_ not!" she hissed, glaring at the dwarf who towered before her. "If you think it best for me to accompany you, then that is something to be discussed between you and _me_! If you are afraid that I will spill your little secret, then you discuss it with _me_! If you have any concerns about something involving me, then you will discuss it with _me_!"

"You'd do best to lower your voice," Dwalin grumbled from where he was standing beside Thorin, but Cinna merely shot the bald dwarf a dark look.

"And you'd do best to stay out of things that do not concern you," she retorted angrily, causing Dwalin's eyebrows to rise slightly upon the unexpected fierceness of her reaction. He would have grinned, had it not been for the situation at hand. Cinna just returned her gaze to Thorin. "And as for your request for me to come with you, I politely refuse."

"You will not," Thorin said sternly, giving the fae a dark look as she stood her ground before him. "The knowledge that you have gained poses a risk to our quest should you tell anyone."

"I won't tell anyone!"

"But you cannot give that promise, can you?" the dark-haired dwarf retorted angrily, raising a finger to emphasise his point. "Gandalf has told me of your little predicament when it comes to truthfulness. I cannot trust you to keep this secret and so I can do nothing but to keep you with us where I can control the damage you do."

"The damage I do?" Cinna repeated in disbelief, shaking her head at him. "I would not do any damage!"

"Can you swear that you would never tell a soul about what you know about our quest?" Thorin asked calmly and the fae frowned in turn. She couldn't lie to him, however much she wanted to in order to get out of this mess.

"I can swear that I would do my best not to," she answered but Thorin just shook his head.

"That is not enough."

"Well, it has to be," Cinna hissed. "Because I am not coming with you."

And with that she turned away from the dark-haired dwarf before her and walked out onto the balcony without sparing him another look. Thorin just let out a deep sigh, shooting a glance to where she had disappeared before he tiredly rubbed one hand over his face. When he looked back up, he saw that every single member of the company was staring at him, waiting for some sort of explanation. It caused a frown to appear on the dwarf-king's face.

"Finish packing your things," he grumbled at them. "I don't want any delays."

As soon as he'd said the words, his men went back to their previous occupations, gathering their things and getting themselves ready to leave in the evening. Only Dwalin kept standing beside him as his things were already packed, though he didn't say anything as both Fili and Kili came over to stand by Thorin as well. The brunet dwarf was the first to speak up.

"What is this about, uncle?" Kili asked quietly so that none of the others would hear. "Last night you said she was to be left behind here, why have you suddenly changed your mind?"

"The situation has changed," Thorin answered with a sigh, obviously frustrated. "The knowledge she has is a risk to us."

Kili frowned at that, not understanding what his uncle meant. "But we can't take her with us. You cannot be serious about that? What good is she to us when she can neither fight, nor cook, nor heal or do anything else of use?"

"She'll be a burden," Dwalin agreed in a low rumble while Thorin just furrowed his brows at them.

"Of course she will be a burden," he growled impatiently. "But as long as we take her with us, she won't be able to spill her information to anyone that doesn't already know."

Kili huffed slightly. "If it's just that, surely we can make her see reason and convince her to keep her mouth shut."

"No, Kili, we cannot."

"Why not?" the brunet dwarf asked in confusion, looking from his uncle to Dwalin and then to Fili who had stayed silent during the conversation but was the one to answer him now.

"Because she's obliged to tell the truth," the blond said with a sigh, as he finally understood where the problem lay. Thorin just shot his oldest nephew a look, surprised that he already knew of this, but didn't comment on it and instead just nodded. Kili, however, looked on in confusion. Fili shrugged slightly upon his little brother's questioning gaze. "I don't quite know why but as far as Cinna is concerned, riddles are the closest thing she has to a lie. She can only conceal the truth, not deny it completely. There's no place for lies in nature, is what she said to me. So, I suppose because she's some kind of… well, natural spirit, there is no place for lies in her either."

"Your insight seems to be almost as good as Gandalf's," Thorin muttered with one eyebrow slightly raised at his nephew who only shrugged again in reply.

"She tells me things," Fili said. "I consider her a friend."

Thorin simply looked at Fili silently for a moment, making the blond fidget slightly beneath his uncle's intent gaze before the dwarf-king finally spoke again. "Well, then. Maybe as her friend, you could talk to her and try to make her see reason. She may be a small risk, but a risk nonetheless. And I cannot take any risks if this quest is to succeed, Fili, you know how important it is."

"Yes, I know," Fili answered quietly, nodding and shooting a glance toward the balcony where Cinna had disappeared. If he were to guess, he'd have said that she went back to the little pond she'd sat at the day before. "I'll try and talk to her."

Thorin gave his nephew a nod in turn, reaching out and clapping his hand on Fili's shoulder shortly. The blond just gave his uncle a small smile before he walked past him, only shortly catching his little brother's eyes as he pushed past him. Kili watched his brother go after the fae, a frown coming to play on his face as he thought about having to deal with the cheeky redhead for the whole rest of this journey. Suddenly, the road seemed even longer than it had already been before.

* * *

><p>If Cinna had been a violent person, she would have kicked something by now. Preferably a dark-haired dwarf. But as it was, she was sitting by the pond, her feet in the water and her fingers brushing through her hair for something to do. She looked at her auburn locks with a small sigh, picking a few remaining petals from them. Most of them had broken or fallen out over the course of the past day, so she would need to take some time to find new ones to put in her hair.<p>

"What are you thinking about?"

The fae jumped at the voice that suddenly sounded from behind her, turning her head to see Fili standing there, looking down at her with a small smile. "You really need to stop doing that," she muttered quietly, though returned the dwarf's smile faintly.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," Fili said as he sat down beside her, crossing his legs beneath him. "I just came to talk to you. So, what were you thinking about?"

"Just my hair," Cinna answered, causing the blond dwarf to frown in confusion before she continued to explain. "It is usually decorated with colourful petals, you see, but they've all broken now or fallen out."

"You can just put new ones in, can't you?"

The fae huffed slightly. "Well yes, if I ever get rid of you lot."

"Oh, we're not _that_ bad, now are we?" Fili smiled, nudging her slightly with his shoulder. "And there are certainly some nice flowers on the way to Erebor."

Cinna shot the dwarf a sideways glance, shaking her head at him. "You don't really think I'm going with you, do you?"

"Well," Fili started but Cinna cut him off before he could say anything, returning her gaze to the calm water of the pond before them.

"This is not my adventure, Fili," she said quietly. "My place is in nature, not with a bunch of dwarves who refuse to let me go, trying to defeat a dragon. It's crazy, Fili, and you know it."

The blond dwarf said nothing for a few moments, simply looking at the water before him before finally, a deep sigh left his throat and he brought his gaze back to the fae beside him. Cinna was still looking out over the pond but turned her head slightly once she noticed him staring at her. She raised her eyebrows in question and Fili cleared his throat, turning his body towards her so that he was facing her before he spoke.

"You know _what_ we're doing, alright," he said slowly. "But what you don't know yet is _why_ we are doing it. Erebor used to be a prosperous kingdom, full of life and riches beyond your imagination…"

"Are you sure you want to give me more information when even the small amount of knowledge I gathered has caused such trouble?" Cinna cut in tentatively but Fili just shushed her by clicking his tongue at her.

"I think it's only fair that you understand the extent of it all before you make any decision," he muttered then before he continued explaining. "Thorin's grandfather, Thror, ruled over the mountain during that time and my uncle grew up there together with his brother and sister, my mother. The people of Erebor led good lives, healthy and prosperous. And then the dragon came. Smaug attacked the mountain and brought nothing but destruction and death upon it. He buried Erebor's people in a storm of smoke and fire and the only thing left to do for those that survived was to flee from the mountain. No help came from the Elves that day or any day after that and Erebor's people were forced to wander the lands in search of a new home, starvation and exhaustion clawing at them each moment."

Cinna had become very quiet by now and simply listened as Fili continued speaking, his voice deep and low with a sadness that he was too young to have experienced himself and yet it seemed to be embedded in his very soul, weighing him down.

"Erebor was lost over a hundred years ago and its people have been living in exile for as long, going through more hardships than you can imagine, making do with what they had in Ered Luin. Thorin built a good home for us there, but it is not where we belong. Erebor is the legacy of Durin's folk; our home, our kingdom and Smaug stole it from us." Fili stopped for a moment, taking in Cinna's face as she stared at him with wide, sad eyes. He sighed quietly, inclining his head before he looked back up at her. "There has been no word of the dragon for sixty years. He might be dead. And if we don't use this chance we have now, we might never be able to return to our homeland. Other eyes will turn to the mountain and the riches that lie there unprotected, while we remain away from our true home in an exile that was forced upon us."

"What do you mean to tell me with that, Fili?" Cinna asked quietly, her voice and her gaze mirroring the sadness of his tale. The blond dwarf smiled faintly, giving the fae a kind look.

"I mean to tell you that we have our reasons to be so secretive and protective of this quest, because it is our only chance to reclaim the kingdom that is rightfully ours," he said. "And that we can use every help we can get."

"But I would not be of any help."

Fili shook his head. "Staying with us and keeping your knowledge safe would help us, Cinna. It would help us to ensure the succeeding of our quest. And if you feel any sympathy for our people and for the hardships that were forced upon them, which I know you do, I can see it clearly in your eyes, then you will find it in yourself to help us."

Cinna stayed silent, simply staring at Fili with wide eyes, studying him as he returned her gaze calmly. He had done what he could; now the decision lay with her. Fili knew he couldn't force her to come with them but he hoped that the noble purpose of their quest would convince her that the fate of many was sometimes more important than the fate of one.

A small sigh escaped the fae's lips as she looked away from him, inclining her head as she closed her eyes for a moment. Fili only watched as she opened them again and suddenly stood up before he followed her example quickly. "Very well, then," she muttered quietly to herself as she turned and walked back the way she had come, the sky darkening above them as evening took over the roofs of Rivendell. Fili followed after her as she made her way up the stairs towards the room the dwarves occupied, wanting to ask her what she was doing, what she had decided, but she was too fast and determined for him to get a quiet word in.

It was only when they were back with the company, who was almost completely packed and ready to leave now, that Cinna stopped and Fili came to a halt a few feet behind her, watching as her gaze was fixed upon the dark-haired dwarf who stood on the other side of the room together with Balin. Thorin looked up as he noticed the two of them entering and his eyebrows rose slightly as he returned the fae's gaze evenly.

"I don't like being passed over," she proclaimed sternly. "Next time you have an issue with my person, you'll discuss your concerns with me."

"Next time?" Bofur chimed in curiously from where he was sitting on his pack, smoking his pipe and sending her a look over the tip of it. Cinna only glanced at the hatted dwarf shortly.

"Yes, I felt like I should make that clear if I am to come on this journey with you."

Bofur just smiled brightly at her words as she returned her gaze to Thorin whose face was a calm mask, only his eyes shortly flicked to Fili behind her with a little appreciation in them. He looked back at the red-haired female then, nodding shortly before he called out to none of his men in particular, as his eyes were still fixed on Cinna's green ones.

"Get her something appropriate to wear," the dwarf-king called, his deep voice echoing through the room as he looked away from Cinna. "We depart in an hour."

The fae opened her mouth slightly to protest, though no sound came out as she glanced down at her own form, frowning as she saw her usual attire. Her thin green dress was slightly ruffled, yes, but she didn't see anything wrong with it. But she didn't have any more time to reflect on it as she felt someone grab her hand and before she knew it, Bilbo was dragging her from the room in search of something for her to wear. The fae only registered faintly as Ori and Bofur trailed after them, the latter still puffing on his pipe and grinning quietly to himself.


	9. Not enough

**A new chapter for you lovelies!**

**_TerraMacMillan_: I'm glad you liked the last chapter! And yes, travelling mountains will be troublesome for Cinna, and Mirkwood... well, let's just say there are a lot of things yet to come :D**

**_Eruwaedhiel95_: Yes, Fili just always knows what to say :D And well, she's always travelled around in that dress, so it would seem perfectly acceptable to her :D**

**Thanks to _Evangeline Pond_ and _xoxo_ for your reviews! I'm glad you like the story!**

**Also, thanks to favouriters and followers!  
><strong>

**Now, go ahead and read and let me know what you think, I'd love to hear from you!**

* * *

><p>The departure from Rivendell was made swiftly and in secret. Night had already fallen over the Elven city when the Company made their way out through its streets, the only witness of their departure being the moon and the stars above.<p>

Cinna trailed along unhappily at the back with Bilbo, both of them sad to leave the beautiful Valley of Imladris, though that was only a small part of why the fae was sulking. She would have liked to talk to Gandalf before they'd left but that had turned out to be impossible, as the wizard had departed swiftly to council without so much more as giving her a nod and a friendly smile. That was the last she had seen of him before Thorin had ordered them to go, and now she was trailing along with the dwarves in a set of clothing that she didn't really like, on a quest that she didn't want to be on. Bilbo, Ori and Bofur had managed to find her some trousers, tunic and a coat that had all belonged to an elven child before her, and though Cinna had to admit that everything fit her quite nicely, she would have much preferred to remain in her usual clothing. The trousers seemed constricting, the coat adding an unusual weight on her shoulders, which was only increased by the small pack she was carrying on her back. The dwarves had all gathered together the things they had to spare, such as a bedroll, blanket, socks, a water-skin, and anything else one would need on a journey such as theirs. The thin green fae's dress was stuffed on the very bottom of the pack, as she had refused to leave it behind.

But what bothered Cinna the most were definitely the shoes. She didn't like them one bit and couldn't understand why anyone would put their feet into such uncomfortable things. After the amount of walking they'd already done, the fur-lined boots were making her sock-covered feet sweat, a sensation that was entirely unknown and unwelcome to the fae.

"What's that face you're making?" Bilbo asked quietly, head turned towards her as the company made their way up a steep hill that led out of the valley, sending her a curious look as Cinna glanced up from where she had been glaring at her boots to meet the hobbit's gaze.

"Oh! Nothing," she uttered, hesitating shortly as she shot a glance down at Bilbo's own furry feet. "I just… Oh, Bilbo, it's just that I really don't like walking in these things. How come you and the others forced me into them but yourself are walking blissfully on bare feet?"

The Halfling's eyebrows rose in surprise before he laughed quietly, giving the fae a small shrug. "You can always take them off," he answered before he stopped shortly, turning for a moment to take in the view of a rising sun above the Valley of Imladris. A small sigh left his throat as he gazed down into Rivendell. "I am sad to leave this place. I do hope I'll come back soon."

"Master Baggins, fae," a deep voice suddenly spoke from behind them and they both turned around at the same time to see Thorin shooting them a stern look as the company filtered past him up the hill into the wilderness, Balin leading the way. "I suggest you keep up."

Bilbo just sighed and nodded shortly before he walked past Thorin, turning his back on the beautiful valley of Imladris as he followed the others. Cinna followed the hobbit's example, however, she stopped next to the dark-haired dwarf for a moment, shooting him a pointed look as he returned her gaze evenly. "I do have a name, you know," she said cooly. "I suggest you use it."

And with that she brushed past him and followed Bilbo who had waited for her a few metres further ahead. Neither of them looked back to see Thorin releasing a deep sigh before he turned as well, building the end of the group. They walked for a long while, hours had passed when they finally reached the top of the valley, and even then Thorin pushed the company to go further. It was only at midday that they stopped for a short break, to have something to eat and regain some strength before they marched on for the rest of the day. More hours passed, and as the sky slowly grew grey and then dark, Cinna was marching along unhappily next to Fili, who did his best to keep her spirit up with some funny stories he had in store. And though the fae had found the blond dwarf to be entertaining for a while, her mind was now occupied with the pack that was pulling on her shoulders and the boots that were squeezing her feet. Finally, when the stars began to shine above them, Thorin called the company to a stop and ordered them to make camp for the night.

As Cinna had never made camp and usually just found a nice spot in a tree to sleep, she now watched curiously how Oìn and Gloìn set up the fire, all the while following the others' example as she spread out her bedroll on the floor, pulling out a blanket from her pack and eventually just letting herself plump down onto it, immediately pulling off her boots. After a while, Fili sat down next to her, where he'd set up his own bedroll, just as she was wiggling her toes to get some feeling back into them.

"How are you doing?" the blond dwarf asked quietly, smiling as he watched her dancing toes. Cinna just sighed and shrugged slightly, shooting him a sideways glance.

"I think my feet will have fallen off by the end of this journey."

Fili chuckled, shaking his head. "Well, then we'll just have someone carry you."

"I'll volunteer!" Bofur called from where he was sitting a bit further away, grinning at Cinna as she looked at him. "I'll bet the lass is actually lighter than my pack!"

The fae smiled in amusement and shook her head at the hatted dwarf as he shot her a wink while most of the rest of the dwarves laughed at his comment. Cinna found the sound rather nice, the kerfuffle of laughter over a warm campfire was something she had not experienced before but found that she could get used to. They were a rather lovely bunch, over all, these dwarves.

"You will get used to the shoes, surely," Gloìn said then, sending her a nod. "It'll take some time, lass, but yer feet will thank ye."

"Best not let it take too much time," Dwalin grumbled from where he was sitting beside the red-haired dwarf, sharpening one of his axes while Bombur was preparing their dinner. The large cook never said much, but always smiled kindly at Cinna when she met his gaze.

Gloìn huffed slightly in return to Dwalin's words. "Give her some time, will ye," he rumbled. "She's just a little fae, after all."

"Doesn't matter what she is," the bald dwarf replied without even looking up from his work and Cinna could only watch from her spot as the conversation continued. "If she doesn't get used to them soon, she'll only slow us down. It's no good having someone in the company who can't defend herself but can't run either."

"Dwalin is right," Thorin rumbled before Gloìn could say anything else, his gaze wandering from the bald dwarf to the red-haired fae who sat across from him. He met her gaze over the fire, his icy blue orbs sparkling in the orange light, though his face was as stony as always. "You will need to get used to them soon, for we are to travel the mountains in a few days. And you will need to learn how to defend yourself. I won't have any of my men risking their lives for you. If you want to survive, you will adapt."

Cinna said nothing for a moment, slightly taken aback by the dwarf-king's harsh words, though she had not really expected anything else from him. Although, she hadn't thought she'd be expected to learn to defend herself. How was she supposed to do that? Before, she could have vanished in the bushes and escape from danger this way, but that only worked when she was wearing her fae dress. She shot a small look down at her trousers and tunic, a small sigh escaping her lips. Things had certainly changed now.

"I have never used a weapon," she then muttered quietly, fidgeting slightly as she thought back to the warg chase when she had been holding one of Fili's knives. Thorin held her gaze for a moment, his face showing that he had known that already, before he looked away as Bombur handed him his bowl of stew for supper.

"Fili and Kili will teach you," the dwarf-king then said, his voice an order to not only Cinna but also his nephews who merely inclined their heads obediently as they were passed their food, as well. "They are both skilled warriors and in addition to swordsmanship, Kili will be able to show you the basics of archery."

As Cinna glanced over toward the brunet dwarf, she felt as though Kili wanted to say something but he simply pressed his jaw together and returned his gaze to the bowl in his hands without uttering a word. The fae looked back at Thorin as she was passed a bowl as well, but the dark-haired dwarf was concentrated on eating while Dwalin spoke to him quietly in a language that Cinna didn't understand. Apparently, there was nothing more to say on this matter for Thorin, so Cinna didn't try. Balin, who was sitting next to the dwarf-king, shortly caught her gaze and sent her a comforting smile beneath his bushy white beard, his eyes sparkling kindly. It eased the fae's mind slightly and with a sigh, she picked up her spoon and began eating.

This would be a long journey.

* * *

><p>"No, no, no. That's rubbish, try again."<p>

Cinna took a few deep breaths, clenching her eyes shut as she tried to gather her energy once more, even though there was next to none of it left. She didn't mind the continuous walking she had to do in order to keep up with this quest, she'd even gotten more used to these accursed boots over the last few days. But it was the training, the long and exhausting lessons that she received each night from Fili and Kili that were quickly draining her of her any strength she had left in the evenings.

"I can't," she let out, panting as she let the sword sink to the floor, her arms trembling from the weight of it. Her hair and tunic stuck to her sweaty skin. The tip of Fili's borrowed sword landed with a clunk in the earth and the fae leaned slightly on its hilt, looking up to meet Kili's eye. He had been the one sparring with her while his big brother was watching from the side, calling corrections to her as they were fighting.

"That's not acceptable," Kili answered with an authoritarian voice as he watched her. "You need to learn how to fight."

"But I can't," Cinna breathed tiredly, shaking her head as she tried to even out her breathing and wiping some of her red strands from her sweaty forehead. "I can't fight. I don't _want_ to fight. I'm a fae, not a warrior."

Kili just looked at her sternly, obviously displeased, though that was nothing new for Cinna. He always seemed to be displeased with her for some reason. "It doesn't matter if you want to. You have to. I don't think you realize how dangerous this quest truly is."

"I do realize that," the redhead replied in a small huff, narrowing her eyes at the brunet dwarf. "If you remember, I was with you when you were running from wargs and orcs."

"Why, funny you should mention it," Kili scoffed, lowering his sword as he faced her. "Because I do happen to remember that. I remember how you were frozen with fear, staring at the body of a dead orc while clutching a dagger in your hand that would have been completely useless if you'd actually been attacked."

Cinna frowned at him. "That's –"

"- the truth, and you know it," Kili spoke over her impatiently, raising his sword again and Cinna instinctively took a step back, though she was still holding on to the sword in her hand, its tip still stuck in the ground. She didn't have the strength to lift it anymore. "I know you don't want to fight. I can see that you're scared just at the sight of a sword, never mind holding one. And I also know why."

He quickly took a few steps forward then, too fast for Cinna to raise her heavy sword to try and deflect the blow, and touched his blade to the part of her arm that lay bare because she had rolled up her sleeves. It wasn't a hard hit, it didn't cut her skin but the touch of the iron still burned on her skin and Cinna flinched back with a small pained noise, letting go of her sword and bringing her hand up to rub the spot. She was about to confront Kili when the brunet dwarf did it again, this time on her other arm. The fae hissed and took a few steps backwards, out of Kili's reach.

"Stop it," she said with a glare, rubbing the slightly reddened skin where the iron had touched her. Kili just snorted through his nose as he shook his head.

"Kili!" Fili called from where he had observed the scene a bit further away, leaning against a tree. "That's enough."

The brunet dwarf shot a quick look over his shoulder towards Fili who shook his head at him before he looked back at the fae before him, his gaze still stern though he lowered his sword.

"Do you think an orc will stop just because you say so?" he demanded of her, looking at her intently. "Do you think the enemy would care at all that the touch of iron burns your skin? No, they will take pleasure in your pain. They would take advantage of it, torture you with it."

Cinna shuddered at the thought, hugging her arms around herself a bit tighter as she lowered her gaze. Kili just looked at her, letting his words sink in as he stepped forward and picked up the sword she'd dropped on the floor. As he stood back up, she was looking at him again, her emerald eyes wide with fear, though Kili thought he could see some sort of understanding in them as well. Maybe he could use this fear to overpower the one she had of weapons and fighting, and actually get her to learn something. He sighed quietly, holding her gaze as he spoke.

"So, maybe you see now the importance of not letting it ever get that far. You don't have to be scared of a sword if you know how to use one. Knowing how to fight means knowing how to stay alive. And that's what you want to do."

He waited until Cinna nodded jerkily, still hugging her arms around herself, before he sheathed his sword and gave the other back to Fili. The blond dwarf shot the fae a sympathetic look when she didn't move. "I think that's quite enough for tonight," he said softly, giving the redhead a friendly smile as she looked up at him. "Go back to camp and get something to eat, we'll be right behind you."

Again, the fae just nodded and padded off through the bushes that led away from the small clearing they'd been using as a training ground to where the company had set up camp earlier. Fili waited until Cinna was out of sight before he directed his gaze to his little brother, his expression growing more serious.

"You didn't have to be so hard on her," he said quietly, sheathing his sword as Kili rolled his eyes in turn.

"It's no use going easy on her if she is ever to learn something."

"Still," Fili answered with a small shake of his head. "She's not used to a life like this, to fighting and to basically being in constant danger. You could consider this next time you're with her."

Kili let out a deep sigh, slightly inclining his head to escape his brother's stern gaze. "We've been at this for five days without any success now. She finally had to understand what this is all about, Fili. The only way to get her to overcome her fear of fighting is to show her the horror of what could happen if she doesn't. And to hope that the fear of that will be greater than the other." He paused shortly, slightly rubbing his neck with one hand as he let his gaze wander to the spot where the fae had disappeared. "I realize it's not the best way to make progress, but it's better than making no progress at all. We don't know when we'll run into trouble next, or if we will at all, but something could happen any day and I don't want her to be completely unprepared."

Fili said nothing and looked at his little brother for a moment. The brunet actually wanted the fae to make progress, Fili could see that, and he was glad for it. He knew that Kili hadn't been entirely thrilled to be teaching the red-haired female, for he knew that the two of them still had trouble getting along. The blond just sighed and nodded then, motioning with his head to go back to camp.

They found Cinna and the others already eating supper, the fae sitting next to Balin who was telling her a few things about dwarven culture and history. She was listening with great interest and only glanced up shortly when the two princes walked into camp.

Kili let himself slump down next to his brother and began eating as soon as Bombur handed him his bowl, and though he was trying not to, he found himself shooting small glances over to the fae every now and again. He wasn't quite sure why he was doing it. Maybe because he felt a bit guilty about the way he'd treated her during training and wanted to make sure she was all right. Whatever the reason for his glances, he noticed the way her red hair glowed in the firelight and the soft features of her face as she listened to Balin with a small smile. He realized that she wasn't a warrior, and was somewhat sorry he had to be so hard on her. But he did hope she realized that he was not being so strict with her because he didn't like her but because he cared enough to not want anything bad happen to her. That didn't mean he liked her, of course, but just because that was the case didn't mean he didn't care at all. She was now a member of the company, after all. However, as Cinna looked up and shortly caught his gaze across the fire, Kili saw her smile fade and she quickly averted her gaze to look at something else.

A silent sigh escaped Kili's lips as he directed his own gaze back to the bowl of food in his lap and he stuck his spoon into his stew unhappily. He didn't notice Fili giving him an odd look from where he was sitting beside him and neither the small shake of his brother's head as he ate his own food.


	10. Thunder and lightning

**New chapter!**

**_OFBLOODANDROSES_: Exactly, they should consider that she didn't actually want to come with them before they push her to her limits. And they will, at some point, soon :D Glad you liked the chapter!**

**_Bitty-Girl:_ Nothing to be sorry about, I realise that Fili seems a very good choice at the moment, that's actually intended :D But Kili and Cinna will work this out quite soon, I promise :D Glad you liked the chapter!**

**_TerraMacMillan_: Don't worry, they're not forgetting that she was made to come, and that will be a topic quite soon, as well :D Glad you liked the chapter!**

**Thanks to followers and favouriters!**

**Now, read and hopefully, enjoy!**

* * *

><p>It was three days of continuous walking later that the company reached the foot of the Misty Mountains and Cinna had to admit that by now she was quite happy to have the thick boots on her feet, protecting her from the sharp pebbles on the stony ground. There was a dull ache in her arms from the continuous training in the evenings and the weight of the sword she had to use.<p>

"We move on until nightfall," Thorin announced where he was standing at the front of the group, glancing up at the massive mountain front that stretched toward the sky. It had taken them seven days to get this far, and the dwarf-king was determined to move as fast as possible, so he could only allow his men a short break now before they would have to start climbing. He ignored the grumbling behind him as he moved forward, the company following reluctantly on his heels.

The climb turned out to be a rather great challenge for Cinna as the path turned more and more narrow, rocky and steep with every hour they marched on.

"Careful," Fili muttered as he caught her by her wrist when she slipped yet again as she'd done several times already during the last few hours. He pulled her back to her feet and forward, so that she was walking in front of him between the blond and his brother who only shot a short look over his shoulder before he moved on. Cinna felt Fili's hand come to push lightly on her back, keeping her more or less steady as she followed behind Kili.

It was only a little while later that the fae lost her footing again, this time because she had been looking at the sky rather than the ground, and she quickly reached out to grab the hard stone wall that was to her left in order not to fall down into the deep abyss that opened on her other side. Her breathing was fast as she shot a small, fearful look to her right. They were already very far up the mountainside and the valley lay deep down beneath them. A small pained gasp left Cinna's mouth then as her hand slid along the rough stone as she moved forward and cut into her palm and she quickly pulled back to clutch her hand to her chest.

"What is it?" Fili asked from behind her, though she couldn't bring herself to look at him over her shoulder, instead her gaze flicked back up to the sky above. The clouds that had been grey at the beginning of the day had darkened considerably over the last hours and were now looming over them as a thick dark wall. "Did you hurt yourself?"

"Just a little," Cinna called back over her shoulder, glancing down at the small cut on her palm before carefully following after Kili as he stepped over a rock that blocked part of the way. With a last glance up to the sky, she turned her head slightly to look at Fili over her shoulder. "I don't think we should go any further today."

Fili frowned at her as he climbed after her further up the mountainside. "What?"

"There's a storm brewing," the fae answered, this time calling it out louder so that the rest of her sentence could be heard further ahead in the group. "It's unwise to go much further."

Dwalin shot a glance back over his shoulder upon her words, before looking up at the sky himself. A cold wind had picked up by now, whooshing around their heads as they kept moving on.

"Thorin!" Dwalin called, causing the dwarf-king to stop for a moment and turn slightly so he could look at the bald dwarf. "Maybe the fae is right. It looks like the weather is going to get nasty!"

But Thorin just shook his head in turn, ignoring the drops of rain that had now begun to fall from the clouds upon their faces. "No! We move on until nightfall and then we'll find shelter!"

Dwalin just nodded in return, motioning for the others to move on as they had waited for a decision to be taken. The dwarves followed Thorin further, pulling up their hoods and tightening their collars to try and protect themselves from the rain and the wind that were both picking up in force quickly. Cinna's wet hair was sticking to her face when she pulled up the hood of her coat, sniffling slightly as the cold bit at her skin. She didn't want to move on, feeling her stomach drop with every step she made, but she had no choice but to go forward, as Fili was urging her on from behind.

It wasn't long until the sky had grown so dark that it was hard to tell whether night had already fallen, and lightning illuminated the clouds from time to time, accompanied by deep, rumbling thunder that shook Cinna to the core. She was scared and cold, and desperately trying not to lose her footing and fall down into the dark abyss to her right. The fae found herself clutching to the stone wall to her left, her hand clammy from the cold and the cut that made her palm feel sore, as the thunder seemed to shake the whole mountain, the ground shaking beneath her feet. _This is not normal_, the redhead thought to herself with wide eyes, as Thorin shouted for them to hold on to the wall. The rain and wind were now so strong that it was hard to keep your eyes open, or to see anything further than the person walking in front of you and so Cinna didn't see at first but only heard the commotion and the shouting as Bilbo lost his footing and almost fell down into the valley when a part of the path broke away beneath his feet.

"Bilbo!" she called, though her voice was lost in the noise of the storm. She felt her heart beat rapidly in her chest as she saw Dwalin and Balin pull the hobbit back to safety. The fae then turned her head, squinting through the rain at Thorin who was at the very front of the group, as she called to him as loud as she could. "Thorin! We must find shelter!"

Thorin turned his head towards her, but Cinna didn't have any time to see whether he nodded or shook his head, as Dwalin's scream turned everyone's attention to him.

"LOOK OUT!" he yelled and upon turning her head in the direction the bald dwarf was looking, Cinna couldn't help the fearful scream escaping her as a huge boulder came flying towards them through the air, hitting the stone wall several metres above their heads. The fae felt an arm wrap around her waist and push her painfully back against the wall as the boulder burst into several big rocks that now tumbled down onto the path, breaking pieces of it off as they fell down into the valley.

"This is no thunderstorm!" Balin called then, once the rocks had stopped falling down on them for a moment, looking out over the valley towards the other side, where a massive figure made of stone was emerging from the very mountain itself. "It's a thunder battle! Look!"

Cinna's eyes were wide with fear as she beheld the unbelievable sight, trembling from head to toes, as the tremendous figure ripped another massive boulder from the mountainside.

"Bless me!" Bofur called, taking a few steps forward to get a better look. "The legends are true! Giants! Stone giants!"

The stone giant they had been looking at threw his boulder then, and the company watched with wide eyes as it flew over their heads and hit another stone giant that had now emerged in the chest, causing it to fall and the earth to shake as the stony figure collapsed. Cinna ducked as stones fell from the sky, damaging the path even further, while Thorin yelled for Bofur to take cover. And it was then that the ground beneath their feet suddenly shook again, and the fae looked down as her legs suddenly began to move by themselves. A large crack was appearing between her feet, causing her legs to spread apart as she realized that they were standing on the knees of one. They were _on_ a stone giant. And it had decided to join the battle.

Before she realized what was going on, she felt the arm around her waist that had saved her before pull her to the side roughly, saving her from falling down into the abyss. The redhead collided with Kili's chest and he kept one arm around her, keeping her steady against him, as he reached out the other towards Fili who was on the other side of the widening crack.

"Kili!" the blond called over the noise of the thunder battle as the giant they were on moved to stand, causing the company to clutch desperately to the stone in order not to fall off. "Grab my hand!"

But the gap was too big now, and the brothers' hands were too far from each other to connect. Cinna turned her head, watching with horror as Fili and the rest of the company drifted further away while their stone giant battled with the other one, their tremendous heads colliding, causing more rocks to fall from the sky. The giant they were on stumbled backwards into the mountainside and the ground beneath their feet shook once more as its leg hit the mountain. Cinna didn't even hear as Thorin screamed for them to move, she only felt Kili grasping her tighter and dragging her along before he jumped with her in his arm to the safety of another mountain ledge that was not part of a giant. Cinna tumbled to the floor as did the rest of them, before she quickly looked back up to see that the giant on which the rest of the company still was had now lost the fight and was collapsing, and swaying toward the mountainside.

"NO! FILI!" she heard someone scream, though she was not sure whether it had been Thorin or Kili, or both of them, when the rest of the company swayed past them on the giants knee, drifting quickly toward the rock wall further ahead. Cinna's heart stopped for a moment when she saw the leg colliding with the mountain, squashing Fili and the rest with almost complete certainty. As the stone giant fell backwards, none of the company was left on its leg and they could only watch as it fell down into the valley with a thunderous noise, shaking the whole mountain with its downfall.

"FILI!" Thorin yelled desperately as he moved forward as quickly as he could, holding on with one hand to the wall as he rounded the corner to where the company had collided with the mountain. Kili followed swiftly after the rest, pulling Cinna to her feet and pulling her along, though he didn't pay her much attention as his thoughts were only filled with the worry for his brother. It was only a few moments later that he could hear someone calling out.

"They're alright! They're alive!"

Kili let go of the fae as he arrived next to his uncle who was leaning heavily against the wall, looking at the pile of dwarves before him. A deep breath escaped the brunet dwarf as he spotted a familiar blond mane in the chaos, seeing Fili helping Bombur to his feet. He rushed forward and pulled his brother into a tight hug, trying to make sure that he was still in one piece. Fili groaned quietly, feeling bruises already forming on his body, but returned his little brother's hug just as fiercely.

"Don't do that to me again," Kili uttered quietly, so only Fili could hear once they let go and the blond only gave his little brother a weak grin.

"I'll do my best," he said, before he looked around, meeting his uncle's gaze who was sending him a relieved look. Fili inclined his head as the rest of the dwarves exchanged relieved smiles and claps on the shoulders. In all the chaos, no one noticed that two of their companions were missing at first, only when Bofur called out did their attention shift towards him.

"Where's Bilbo?" the hatted dwarf called as he looked around frantically for the small Halfling. "Where's the hobbit?!"

It was then that they saw it, a few metres back the way they had come, Cinna was lying on her stomach on the rocky floor, her arms dangling over the edge as she seemingly tried to reach for something, crying out for help.

"BILBO!" she called as she grasped the hobbit's wrist with both hands, crying out in strain as his hold on the edge of the path slipped and she held him dangling in the air, his weight dragging her almost over it as well. It was only then that the dwarves finally reacted and Ori jumped forward, grabbing hold of the fae's legs to keep her from sliding any further. Dwalin and Bofur jumped toward the edge, reaching over it and trying to reach the hobbit while Cinna cried out from the weight she was trying to hold.

"Bilbo! Grab my hand!" Bofur called and the hobbit reached out his free hand to try and catch it but couldn't reach. Cinna felt tears fall from her eyes as she felt the hobbit's wrist begin to slip from her wet hands and her already strained hold.

"He's slipping!" she cried out frantically, desperately trying to tighten her hold on her friend without success. She just wasn't strong enough. "GRAB HIM! DO SOMETHING!"

It was then that she saw Thorin jump over the edge out of the corner of her eye, though she couldn't bring herself to look over as she concentrated all her energy on not letting go of Bilbo's wrist. The dwarf-king landed on a small ledge, holding on to the edge of the path with one hand as he grabbed Bilbo's belt with the other and lifted him upward, so that the others could finally pull him to safety. Cinna felt herself being pulled backward as well, once Bilbo was on the path again, and she quickly moved over and wrapped him in a lung-crushing hug, while Dwalin pulled Thorin back up onto the path as well.

The fae pulled back slightly when Bilbo patted her back affectionately, giving her a wobbly smile as he met her gaze, both of them still shaken from the incident.

"I thought we'd lost our burglar," Dwalin grunted as he stood up.

"He's been lost ever since he left home," Thorin growled in return, sending the hobbit a dark look as he sat next to the fae on the floor, averting his gaze to not meet the dwarf-king's eyes. "He should never have come. He has no place amongst us."

With that he turned away, calling for Dwalin to search for a cave where they could take shelter for the night. Cinna watched the dwarf-king go with her mouth hanging open slightly, her eyes narrowed in anger upon the harsh words he had directed at Bilbo. The hobbit, however, just shook his head with a downtrodden expression as he got up and held out his hand to help her to her feet as well.

As they walked into the cave, Bilbo made sure not to cross Thorin's gaze, while Cinna shot the dwarf-king a dirty look that he ignored completely, simply turning his back on them as he told Gloìn not to light a fire. "No fires in this place," he rumbled. "Caves in the mountains are seldom unoccupied."

The fae didn't hear anything else that was being said as she let herself slump onto the floor next to Bilbo, slowly pulling her pack and her coat from her shoulders. Everything was soaking wet from the heavy rain outside and weighing her down. Her wet clothes were sticking to her skin and she would have liked nothing more than a fire to warm her cold limbs up at least slightly. As it was, she just wrung out her long red hair and swung it over her shoulder onto her back before she hugged her knees close to her chest and tried to gather some body heat like this.

For a while, only the sound of the company talking quietly and getting rid of as many wet layers as possible could be heard in the cave and Cinna found her eyelids slowly beginning to flutter shut, tiredness clawing at her as she leaned her head back against the wall behind her with a small sigh. It was then that a shadow fell over her and she opened her eyes again, looking up at the brunet dwarf who was standing before her. Kili returned her gaze without saying anything as he crouched down and held out a small pot of salve and a clean white bandage to her.

"For your hand," he said when she didn't react. "Fili mentioned you'd injured yourself."

"It's nothing, just a small scratch," Cinna replied quietly, looking around to see Fili's own bruises being inspected by Oìn a little further away. But Kili just reached out and grabbed her left hand, pulling it towards him so he could look at her palm. There was a small gash on it, not too deep but still painful if not looked after properly.

"Even a small scratch can be dangerous if it gets infected," the brunet muttered as he carefully began to clean out the dirt from the small wound before he spread some of the salve Oìn had given him over it. Cinna just watched as Kili wrapped the bandage around her hand and tied a secure knot into it without saying anything, though she wondered silently how his touch could be so gentle when his hands were so calloused and big. The brunet shortly looked up to meet her gaze, nodding as she gave him a grateful smile. He then turned his head towards Bilbo. "Do you have any injuries that need tending to? You've taken quite the fall there."

"No," Bilbo murmured in return, shaking his head as he glanced at Cinna's hand which Kili was still holding without being aware of it. The hobbit smiled friendly. "No, thank you, Kili. I'm quite alright."

The brunet quickly let go of the fae's hand and inclined his head before he got up and walked away, leaving the fae and hobbit to themselves, a little distance from the rest of the group.

"Are you really alright?" Cinna asked quietly once she was sure no one was listening to their conversation, turning her head and shooting the hobbit a questioning look. Bilbo sighed quietly, shrugging.

"I'm not injured," he answered.

"That's not what I meant."

"I know."

They both stayed silent for a moment until Cinna finally spoke again, keeping her voice quiet as she addressed the hobbit. "Why did Dwalin call you their burglar?"

Bilbo sighed, shooting her a sideways glance before he spoke. "Oh, I'm supposed to steal something out of the mountain for them. Although, I'm probably not allowed to tell you this."

The fae's eyes widened upon his words. "The mountain where a dragon dwells?" Bilbo just nodded in turn and Cinna's mouth dropped open slightly. "They want you to steal something from under the nose of a fire-breathing dragon?"

Again, Bilbo just nodded and Cinna shook her head, looking at him incredulously. "They are insane," she said. "And you must be, too, to have agreed to such a thing."

"I'm beginning to think I was, yes," Bilbo answered in a quiet murmur, shooting a glance to the entrance of the cave where Bofur had taken up his post for first watch. Many of the dwarves had already gone to sleep by now, everyone tired from the day's troubles. Cinna watched as the hobbit's expression turned somewhat sadder and once more she found herself cursing Thorin silently for his gruff behaviour, wondering how deeply it had truly affected Bilbo.

"I think we should get some sleep now," Bilbo said then, his expression sobering, and Cinna nodded, struggling to keep her eyes open anyway. The hobbit gave her a kind smile as she settled down more comfortably against the stone and she returned it tiredly. "Good night, Cinna. Sleep well."

"You, too, Bilbo," the fae whispered as she closed her eyes, feeling the hobbit shuffle slightly next to her but she was too tired to see what he was doing. If she had opened her eyes, she would have seen Bilbo gathering together his things, his sword sheathed on his belt as he waited for the whole company to fall asleep so that he might make his way back to Rivendell while they were unaware.

As it was, Cinna only woke up again when a loud voice echoed through the cave and her eyes shot open as she heard Thorin shout.

"Wake up! WAKE UP!"

But before the fae even had the chance to sit up and see what was going on, she felt the ground suddenly give in beneath her and with a terrified scream she tumbled down into a tunnel, sliding down into darkness.


	11. Down in the deep

**Another chapter! This is a bit longer than usual, but hey, whatever :D**

**_Evangeline Pond_: And here comes Goblin Town! Hope you enjoy!**

**_Guest_: Glad you liked the last chapter! I can tell you now that Cinna isn't going to handle Goblin Town very well, and I feel really bad for her because, well... she has some rough times coming for her. Hope you'll like it, anyway! :)**

**_Eruwaedhiel95_: Yes, Kili's slowly warming up to her, you'll see more of that over the next chapters. If everything goes to plan, anyway, you never quite know with these two :D Hope you'll like Goblin Town!**

**Thanks to you guys for your lovely reviews and thanks to those who followed and favourited!**

**I hope you enjoy this chapter and let me know what you think!**

* * *

><p>The company landed in a large pile and with a combined groan of pain on a platform of wooden planks after having fallen down a long dark tunnel from the cave they'd been sleeping in. Cinna felt her body being crushed beneath the weight of several dwarves and she had lost all sense of orientation when she finally felt the weight lift off her, though she didn't even have enough time to take a breath before she was hauled roughly to her feet and came face to face with a grimy goblin that had its claw clutched around her arm.<p>

With a horrified scream, the fae tried to move back and shake the creature off but she was pushed forward with the group as they were collared by goblins, dragged and shoved along a narrow wooden pathway, deeper into the goblin tunnels that were lit with orange firelight. She could hear the dwarves shouting and cursing around her, trying to fight off the beasts as best they could but it was to no avail, they were completely outnumbered.

Cinna cried out as several goblins clawed and pulled at her body, hair and clothes, thrashing in their hold as they forced her forward. She felt bile rise in her throat at the beasts' touch, trying desperately to shake them off.

"Get yer hands off her!" a voice shouted from further ahead before suddenly, the goblin right in front of Cinna was shoved out of the way and off the wooden bridge they were walking on, falling down into the darkness beneath. The fae saw Dwalin making his way towards her then, fighting off the goblins that were grabbing at her. He reached out and grasped her arm tightly, pulling her to his side as they were forced forward, his broad body protecting her at least slightly from the goblins' grabby claws. Cinna stuck close to the bald dwarf as they were led further into the goblin tunnels until they eventually reached a tremendous cavern, filled with more wooden bridges that led to a large platform. And on that platform Cinna spotted the most hideous thing she'd ever seen before, a huge goblin, much larger than all the other ones, who was singing a horrendous tune to the sound of drums that filled the air around them. It made a cold shiver run down the fae's spine.

They were shoved onto the platform in front of what seemed to be the huge goblin's throne, made of wood and bones. Dwalin pushed Cinna in front of him as they were gathered in a group again, so that she was standing further from the goblins' reach. The fae was silently grateful for that.

"Catchy, isn't it?" the goblin king then spoke proudly, once he'd finished his horrible song, sitting down on his throne and looking down at the company of dwarves. "One of my own compositions."

Silence hung over the group for a moment as they all looked up at the large goblin with dark glares. "That's not a song," Balin then said from where he was standing next to Cinna who only glanced over at him shortly before her gaze flicked back to the goblin king. "It's an abomination!"

The goblin king's expression hardened, and he quickly motioned for his goblin subjects. "What are you waiting for?" he barked, "Disarm them!"

And with that, the goblins moved into the group of dwarves again, stripping them of their weapons while they could do nothing but watch. Cinna felt a clawed hand grasp at her belt and she instinctively cried out and flinched back, stumbling a step forward until she collided with someone's back. Looking up, she was met with a mop of dark brown hair and broad shoulders. Kili only shot her a short glance over his shoulder before one of his arms moved behind him and pulled her closer, hiding her slim figure behind his muscular form. No matter how much the fae infuriated him at times, Kili did not want to imagine what would happen to her if she were to be exposed to the goblin king.

"Who would be so bold as to come armed into my kingdom?" the goblin king growled, leaning forward in his throne to get a better look at the company. "Spies? Thieves? Assassins?!"

"Dwarves, your malevolence. We found them on the front porch," one of the smaller goblins that had collared them spoke up in reply, bowing slightly to the king.

"Well, don't just stand there!" the Great Goblin barked. "Search them! Every crack! Every crevice!"

Cinna shrank against Kili's back as the goblins ripped away any packs or bags that had been left to them, emptying out their contents onto the floor. The fae only saw out of the corner of her eye as they took Oìn's hearing trumpet away and stomped on it. It was then that she felt Kili's hand wrap around her forearm, making sure that she stayed close to him.

"Don't worry," he whispered to her over his shoulder, his voice almost lost in the commotion around them as the goblin king spoke again.

"What are you doing in these parts?" he demanded, and Oìn stepped forward. "No tricks! I want the truth! Once and for all!"

"Don't tell me not to worry," Cinna hissed back quietly at Kili's back, his hand just squeezing her wrist slightly in return as Oìn spoke.

"You're going to have to speak up, your boys flattened my trumpet," the old healer said in reply, holding up his ruined ear trumpet. The goblin king growled angrily in return, standing up from his throne and marching towards them.

"I'll flatten more than your trumpet, you little – "

"If it's information you want, I'm the one you should speak to!" Bofur called and quickly made his way to the front of the group, coming to stand beside Kili as he met the goblin king's gaze, who had now stopped in his tracks, looking at the hatted dwarf sceptically, yet with interest. Bofur hesitated a moment, trying to think of something to say, before he took a deep breath and began to speak. "We were on the road. Well, it's not so much a road as a path. Actually, it's not even that come to think of it. It's more like a track. Anyway, the point is, we were on this road, like a path, like a track, and then we weren't. Which is a problem… because we were supposed to be in Dunland last Tuesday."

"Visiting distant relations!" Dori chimed in, nodding vigorously at the load of rubbish that Bofur had just rambled together.

"Some inbreds on me mother's side," the hatted dwarf confirmed and ignored the looks the other dwarves sent him.

"SHUT UP!" the goblin king yelled then, causing the company to shrink back slightly as he stood from his throne and stomped his feet so that the wooden planks beneath their feet shook slightly. Kili felt the fae behind him grab hold of the back of his coat, her fingers digging into the fabric.

"Can I worry _now_?" she whispered and the brunet could hear the fear in her voice without even having to look at her, though for some reason the sass of her words made the corner of his mouth twitch upwards. However, his attention was drawn back to the goblin king before he could answer her, for the beast now called out loudly to his subjects.

"Well then, if they will not talk, we'll make them squawk! Bring up the Mangler! Bring up the Bone Breaker! Start with the youngest!"

Cinna only shortly glanced over Kili's shoulder to see whom the Great Goblin was pointing at, realizing with horror that it was Ori who was supposed to be the first victim. She wanted to do something, to help somehow, but she was too scared to even move one muscle. However, it was Thorin who then finally stepped forward, making his way through the group, though Balin tried to hold him back, to face the goblin king.

"Wait!" he called, positioning himself close to Ori who only shot his king a nervous sideways glance before he looked back up at the beast before them. The goblin king's eyebrows had risen now and he was looking down at Thorin apprehensively.

"Well, well, well, look who it is," he drawled loudly. "Thorin son of Thrain, son of Thror; King under the Mountain."

The Great Goblin bowed exaggeratedly to Thorin, sending him a mocking glare, as he went on. "Oh, but I'm forgetting," he said. "You don't have a mountain. And you're not a king. Which makes you… _nobody_, really. But I know someone who would pay a pretty price for your head. Just the head, nothing attached. Perhaps you know of whom I speak, an old enemy of yours. A Pale Orc astride a White Warg."

Now Cinna couldn't help but peer over Kili's shoulder, catching Thorin looking up at the goblin king in surprise, disbelief written all over his face.

"Azog the Defiler was destroyed," the fae heard Thorin growl in return to the beast's words and she wondered who this orc was they were talking about. She had never even heard of that name. "He was slain in battle long ago."

But the goblin king just laughed at Thorin's words. "So you think his defiling days are done, do you?" he asked in amusement before he turned to a small goblin sitting beside him, holding a slate. "Send word to the Pale Orc. Tell him I have found his prize."

The small goblin cackled maniacally, and quickly wrote down the message on his slate before he disappeared down further into the goblin tunnels, vanishing in the darkness. Thorin could only watch the small creature disappear, disbelief and doubt filling his mind as the goblin king laughed at him once more. Could it be that the Defiler was not dead? Thorin supposed it was possible. He hadn't seen him die, after all, but only seen him being dragged away into the mines after he'd cut off half of his right arm.

As Thorin looked back up, he saw dozens of goblins carrying massive instruments of torture toward the platform they were on, bringing them to the Great Goblin who was now singing another horrid tune that made Thorin's jaw clench in anger.

_„Bones will be shattered, necks will be wrung! You'll be beaten and battered, from racks you'll be hung. You will lie down here and never be found, down in the deep of Goblin-town."_

Cinna shuddered at the lustily sung words, risking another glance over Kili's shoulder, though she felt him trying to push her back. But she wanted, no, she needed to see these instruments. She needed to see what she was being afraid of. However, when she peered over to where the goblins were setting up their torture devices, she suddenly heard the goblin king's voice again and it was already too late when she ducked back behind Kili.

"Oh, oh, oooh," the Great Goblin drawled as he had spotted the mane of red hair sticking out from behind one of the dwarfs. "What have we there? A female! Bring her to me!"

Immediately upon the beast's words, Cinna was shoved into the middle of the group as the dwarves tried to fight off any goblins that dared get too close to her, though there was nothing to be done. Every punch they threw came back to them with double force, as they were hopelessly outnumbered. The fae cried out when she felt several hands clamp around her arms, dragging her forward and out of the safety of the company. She felt some of the dwarves trying to pull her back.

"Get your hands off her!"

"Leave her alone!"

"Don't touch her!"

But their cries were soon drowned out when Cinna was shoved roughly to the front of the group and in front of the goblin king. The beast was grinning wickedly down at her as his subjects held her in place, though Cinna was too scared to even try and fight them off. Her whole body was trembling with fear as she looked up at the giant goblin before her.

"Well, well, well," he grinned. "What a lovely face in the middle of a bunch of smelly dwarves."

Cinna flinched back as he reached out one of his enormous hands, dragging his dirty finger along her cheek, the nail scratching against her skin. "It would be a _shame_ to ruin it," he drawled as he retrieved his hand and Cinna took in a deep, shuddering breath, trying to keep herself from crying. "So, tell me, my dear, what are you doing in these parts?"

"She knows nothing," Thorin said sternly from where he was being held a few feet behind the fae, sending the goblin king a dark look. "Leave her be."

"I think you all know more than you are telling," the Great Goblin snarled in return, giving a short sign with his hand upon which the goblins around them suddenly brought out their whips and began striking them, making the dwarves huddle together to keep themselves protected from most of the whipping. The goblin king hummed pensively, scratching his chin with his dirty nails. "Dwarves are awfully stubborn, as we all know. But perhaps, after listening to your little wench scream for a while, you'll be a bit less resistant. See, none of you seem to be inclined to say anything even when being whipped, a very resilient bunch. However, if we shall try out my theory…"

The goblin king made another small move with his hand and before anyone could do anything, a pained cry echoed through the hall as a goblin's whip connected with Cinna's skin. The fae collapsed to the floor, clutching her hands to her face as she whimpered from the burning pain that shot through her head. She heard the dwarves shout and curse, and try to fight their way through the goblins somewhere behind her but she couldn't concentrate on any of it. Before she even had the chance to breathe through the pain across her face, she was struck once more, the whip lashing over her back and making her cry out in pain once again, her voice breaking as tears began to stream from her eyes.

"Now, that is more like it," she faintly heard the goblin king call gleefully as she writhed on the floor, slowly taking her hands from her face to see them stained with blood. Her eyes widened in horror at the sight.

It was then that suddenly all hell broke loose. Cinna heard a goblin crying out in horror and the clang of iron as a sword was thrown to the floor. The fae raised her head as she heard other goblins howl in fear and rage as they retreated from the sword that was lying on the floor. Squinting at it, Cinna recognized it as the one that Thorin usually carried on his belt. As the Great Goblin rapidly ran back to his throne, trampling on several of his subject on his way, his voice echoed loudly through the hall as he pointed to the sword.

"I know that sword! It is the Goblin-Cleaver, the Biter, the blade that sliced a thousand necks."

Cinna didn't understand any of that but quickly ducked her head in fear as the rest of the goblins began whipping the company with ropes again, leaping upon them, biting and slashing. She could hear the noise of fighting behind her, not daring to move in fear of being attacked again, as well. And she was so small that the goblins easily forgot about her in all the chaos.

"Slash them!" the fae heard the goblin king screech from his throne, "Beat them! Kill them! Kill them all! Cut off his head!"

Upon this, Cinna suddenly sat up, though her back ached horribly at the movement, turning her head to see several goblins holding Thorin down to the floor, and one of them pulling out his knife, preparing to behead the dwarf-king.

"No!" the fae called in horror, shakily forcing herself to get to her feet, as Thorin tried to fight off the goblins that were holding him down, to no avail. It was just as Cinna was about to make a step toward them, though she didn't even know how she could possibly be of any help to him, when suddenly there was an explosion of bright light and a shockwave ripped through the area, flinging goblins into the air and destroying the torturing devices.

Cinna was knocked down by the sheer force of it, as was everyone else, and landed painfully on the floor, almost hitting her head on the wooden planks. She groaned in pain as the light passed and left the place in complete darkness. It was only when the light slowly returned that Cinna glanced up again, seeing none other than Gandalf the Grey standing in their midst, his staff and his sword in his hands.

"Take up arms," the wizard called to the dwarves. "Fight. Fight!"

Cinna couldn't move so fast as the dwarves were already on their feet and began scrambling for their weapons that lay scattered on the floor, throwing them to each other as they fought the goblins that were now recovering from the shock as well. The fae could only watch for a moment as Gandalf moved through the chaos, killing several goblins with his sword and staff as they tried to attack him, before a big hand suddenly wrapped around her arm and she felt herself being pulled to her feet.

She came face to face with Fili and the blond dwarf hesitated shortly as he became aware of the damage the whip had done to the fae's soft features. His eyes widened and he felt as though someone had filled his stomach with stones when he saw the bloody gash that ran from her right temple to her chin. He shortly squeezed her arm reassuringly, seeing the wide-eyed look she was giving him upon his reaction.

"Follow me. Quick!" Gandalf called beside them. "Run!"

"Come on," Fili said, giving Cinna a last look before he pulled her along, feeling her stumbling after him, as the dwarves and Gandalf moved forward, fighting their way away from the throne platform. Cutting down the goblins around them, they ran along a pathway that led away, further onto suspended passageways of Goblin Town.

Fili fought off as many goblins as he could with one sword, his other hand wrapped firmly around Cinna's wrist so that she wouldn't get lost in the chaos of fighting, as seemingly hundreds of goblins were chasing after them.

"Quickly!" Gandalf called from where he was running at the head of the group, leading them further and further into Goblin Town. Fili shot a look over his shoulder as he ran along, his heart dropping slightly as he saw the dozens and dozens of goblins closing in on them from behind, and they were becoming more by the second.

"Faster!" the blond dwarf yelled at the same time as he increased his speed, forcing Cinna to go faster as well. The blond knew that the fae didn't have any trouble with speed, usually, but now she was stumbling over her feet several times, struggling to keep up. Fili could only guess that her body was still weary from the injuries she had sustained and the shock of it all.

As goblins were coming at them suddenly from the front, as well, Fili only faintly heard Dwalin's call of "Post!" in the noise of the fighting, before he saw how several of his companions cut a guardrail post from the side of the path they were running on, using it as a massive spear to deflect the attack from the front.

They ran along, fighting and shouting, and as they approached a missing area of the path, Fili forced Cinna along as he ran across the ladder that some of the other dwarves had used to defeat some goblins, the item now acting as a bridge for the company to cross. Fili sprinted past Dwalin who waited on the other side, immediately breaking down the ladder to prevent the goblins from following them.

"Quickly!" Gandalf called again as the dwarves continued running through the maze-like paths. Fili had long ago lost all sense of orientation in these tunnels, only hoping that the wizard knew where he was going. He could feel Cinna stumble once more behind him, and her wrist slipped from his grip. Fili slithered to a clumsy stop after a few metres, turning around to run and get her, though he was shoved forward again roughly by Dwalin, who was running behind him and who had caught the fae before she could fall. He'd swung her onto his back, her slender arms wrapped securely around his thick neck so that he could still use both hands to fight with his two axes.

Relieved, Fili quickly hurried along while unsheathing his second sword and slashing and striking at every goblin that came near him. Then, suddenly, as they were crossing a bridge between two walls of the tremendous cavern, a great crash could be heard as the Great Goblin suddenly broke through the wooden planks from underneath the bridge, pulling himself up onto it, in front of the Company. The dwarves came to slithering halt as Gandalf stopped, several of them bumping into the wizard's back upon his abrupt halt. Fili took a deep breath as they were forced to pause, looking around to see hundreds of goblins approach them from all sides.

"You thought you could escape me?" the Great Goblin screeched, swinging his tremendous mace twice at Gandalf, causing the wizard to stumble back and almost fall if it hadn't been for the dwarves supporting his back and pushing him back onto his feet.

"What are you going to do now, wizard?" the goblin king growled with a sly grin as he stared down at the grey wizard. But Gandalf merely leapt forward, striking him in the eye with his staff. The goblin king dropped his mace, bringing up his hands to clutch his face in pain as he screeched. Using his momentary weakness, Gandalf stepped forward again and sliced the beast's belly with his sword, causing the goblin king to fall on his knees, now clutching his stomach.

"That'll do it," the creature said matter-of-factly before the wizard swung his sword again and sliced the goblin king's neck with one swift strike. The Great Goblin fell down dead, his massive weight causing the wooden bridge to suddenly start shaking beneath the company's feet. The dwarves cried out when the part they were standing on suddenly broke away from the rest of the large bridge and began sliding down the side of the cavern, hitting stones and rocks on its way down. They all grabbed onto something, a piece of rope, or wood, or another dwarf to keep themselves on the wooden bridge as it slid downward at a terrific speed, down the cavern's wall, demolishing everything in its way.

The dwarves clung on desperately, crying out in terror before the bridge suddenly slowed down and landed with a big crash at the base of the cavern, breaking apart and burying them in the timber and wood.

Cinna couldn't even bring herself to groan in pain, all air had been knocked from her lungs as she tried to make her way out of the pile of wreckage without much success. Gandalf, who had already freed himself from the broken planks and was standing on his feet again, saw her struggling and quickly reached out to pull her from the pile. He put one hand on her shoulder and patted it in what was supposed to be comfort, as he inspected the rest of the dwarves who were still stuck in the wreckage.

"Well," Bofur uttered from where he was, "that could have been worse."

Suddenly, the heavy corpse of the Great Goblin came crashing down onto the wreckage, squishing the dwarves further as they all cried out in pain.

"You've got to be joking!" Cinna could hear Dwalin's voice growl from somewhere, though she couldn't quite make him out in the pile of broken wood. Only as they began extricating themselves from the rubble did she manage to catch his eye and he gave her a short nod.

"Gandalf!" Kili's voice suddenly echoed through the tunnel, his voice full of panic as he looked up to see hundreds of goblins coming at them, climbing and jumping down the walls of the cavern. Cinna followed the brunet dwarf's gaze, her eyes widening in horror at the sight. She just wanted to get out of this place, feeling a cold shudder run down her spine as she thought about what they would do to them if they were caught.

"There's too many!" Dwalin called from where he was standing beside her, his axes once again ready to use in his hands. "We can't fight them."

"Only one thing will save us. Daylight!" Gandalf answered hurriedly before he turned and ran off again. "Come on! On your feet!"

The dwarves got up quickly, helping each other out of the rubble, before they ran and followed Gandalf. Before Cinna could even do anything, she felt an arm wrap around her waist and her feet lifted off the floor as Fili picked her up as Dwalin had before, carrying her as he ran along. Their way led them through several dark and moist tunnels, the paths narrow.

However, as Fili carried her along, Cinna suddenly felt a light gush of air hit her face and she instinctively raised her head towards the small breeze. Though her whole face ached as she did, she found a small, relieved smile pulling at her lips as she saw a light ahead. Sunlight was beaming into the tunnel and the company quickly ran towards it, following after Gandalf as he exited the mountain and stepped into the light of a setting sun. Cinna wrapped her arms a bit tighter around Fili's neck as they kept on running down the hill into the forest, as far away from the goblin tunnels as they could while they still had daylight.

It wasn't long before they stopped to catch their breath though and Fili carefully set her back down on her feet, lending her his arm for support as she swayed slightly. The fae gave him a faint smile, or at least she tried, and took a few deep breaths of fresh air to try and calm herself down. It didn't help much and she slowly let go of the blond dwarf's arm as she sat down on the ground beneath a tree, pushing her fingers into the grass beneath her while Gandalf was busy counting the members of the company.

"Five, six, seven, eight...Bifur, Bofur...that's ten...Fili, Kili...that's twelve...and Bombur - that makes thirteen," Gandalf muttered as he looked around, his gaze shortly lingering on the fae sitting on the floor. He drew his mouth askew at her injured state. "And there is Cinna."

The wizard hesitated then, looking around again to see whether he was wrong. But no, there was one member of the company missing still. "Where's Bilbo? Where is our hobbit?" Gandalf called worriedly to the dwarves. "Where is our hobbit?!"

"Curse the halfling! Now he's lost?!" Dwalin called out angrily in return, making Cinna frown at him before she glanced back the way they had come.

"I thought he was with Dori!" Nori said.

"Don't blame me!" the grey-haired dwarf answered indignantly, shooting his brother a glare.

Gandalf huffed in annoyance, before addressing Nori. "Well, where did you last see him?"

"I think I saw him slip away, when they first collared us."

"Then he'll still be in the mountain," Kili muttered with a worried look up the hill.

"What happened exactly? Tell me!" Gandalf demanded sternly, worry filling his voice at the subject of the missing hobbit. Meanwhile, Cinna raised her head and turned around slightly upon hearing a small noise of breaking twigs and rustling grass behind her. She frowned in confusion when there was no one in sight.

"I'll tell you what happened," Thorin then spoke up, his voice a deep angry rumble that echoed over the small clearing. "Master Baggins saw his chance and he took it. He's thought of nothing but his soft bed and his warm hearth since first he stepped out of his door! We will not be seeing our hobbit again. He is long gone."

Cinna's mouth dropped open at his words. "He wouldn't do that," she said without even actually realising that she had uttered it out loud until Thorin's icy glare was directed at her and the dwarf-king raised his eyebrows with a huff, though his eyes softened ever so slightly when he looked at her face. Cinna brought up her hand to cover the side that ached most, even though she had no idea what she was even trying to hide.

"And if he has left, then you have only yourself to blame," she then muttered, returning the dwarf-king's gaze. "You want him to help you retake your home, to steal for you from a fire-breathing dragon, and yet you treat him as though he were worth none of your respect. You think because he is a hobbit and fond of the small things in life, he is somehow lesser than you. But you are a fool to think that, for there is much more to Bilbo than you realise. And if he is still in the mountain, we need to go back and find him!"

"You want to go back in there?" Kili cried out in disbelief. "Do you have a death wish? That would be suicide."

"Would you rather just leave Bilbo to his fate?" the fae hissed angrily back at him and Kili shortly lowered his gaze before he shook his head slightly. "I may not be able to fight but I will not leave a friend behind, no matter what."

"There's no need for that," a voice suddenly interrupted the discussion and everybody's heads shot up to see Bilbo stepping out from behind the tree that Cinna was sitting under. The dwarves and fae looked at him in shock and relief and Cinna quickly, though with a groan, got to her feet and wrapped the hobbit in a tight hug. Bilbo returned it affectionately, smiling, although he loosened his grip when he heard her gasp slightly when he squeezed the whip wound on her back.

"Bilbo Baggins!" Gandalf laughed as the two let go of each other. "I've never been so glad to see anyone in my life!"

The hobbit just smiled as he strode forward into the group, patting Balin affectionately on the shoulder as he passed him.

"Bilbo, we'd given you up!" Kili called with a bright smile on his face.

"How on earth did you get past the goblins?!" Fili added, his face showing relief as well as confusion.

"How, indeed," Dwalin muttered, giving the hobbit a sceptic look from where he was standing beside Thorin. Bilbo hesitated shortly, in the end just giving a nervous laugh and putting his hand on his hips, only Gandalf noticing the small golden ring he slid into his waistcoat pocket.

"Well, what does it matter?" the wizard murmured, his gaze still set on Bilbo's pocket. "He's back!"

"It matters!" Thorin cut in, giving the hobbit a stern look as he leaned his arms on his sword. "I want to know. Why did you come back?"

Bilbo sighed quietly, returning the dwarf-king's gaze as he tried to organise his words. When he spoke, he had everyone's attention.

"Look, I know you doubt me. I know you always have. And you're right, I often think of Bag End. I miss my books. And my armchair. And my garden," he said to them, looking at Thorin earnestly. "See, that's where I belong. That's home. And that's why I came back, because you don't have one. A home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can."

Cinna smiled faintly into the silence that followed Bilbo's words as the dwarves thought about what he had said, her smile mirroring on Gandalf's face. The fae slowly walked over to Fili and stood beside him and his brother as the company nodded and murmured their thanks to the hobbit. If this journey was to go on, then she was certainly glad to have Bilbo still with them, Cinna thought affectionately.

However, her peaceful thoughts were interrupted when a sudden howl echoed through the air.

Cinna's hair stood on end at the sound. She'd heard it before. The day that had sealed her fate to go with this company.

Wargs.


End file.
